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UNIVERSITY 

OF  CALIFORNIA 

LOS  ANGELES 


SCHOOL  OF  LAW 
LIBRARY 


A 


AND 


LAND  TITLES 


A  BOOK  FOR  BOYS  AND  GIRLS 


A  REFERENCE  VOLUME  FOR  PROPERTY 
OWNERS 


A  TEXT  FOR  STUDENTS  IN  THE  LAWS 
OF  REAL-PROPERTY 


A  LIBRARY  OF  ELEMENTARY  PRINCIPLES, 
RESPECTING  THE  DIVISION  OF  OUR 
LAND  AND  THE  LAWS  RELAT- 
ING TO  ITS  OWNERSHIP 


By 
CHARLES  CLAUDIUS  KAGEY 

Secretary,  The  Douglas  County  Abstract  and  Loan  Company;  Charter 

Member,  Illinois  Abstractors'  Association;  Charter  Member 

and  Former  Secretary,  American  Association  of 

Title  Men;  Honorary  Member,  Indiana 

Title  Men's  Association 

1914 


T 
K 

11*4 


THE  TEXT  AND  ILLUSTRATIONS  IN  THIS  WORK 
ARE  PROTECTED  BY  COPYRIGHTS  AS  FOLLOWS  : 

First  Edition 
Copyright  of  1908. 

Second  Edition 
Copyright  of  1910. 

Third  Edition 
Copyright  of  1911. 

Fourth  Edition 
Copyright  of  1914. 

Fourth  Edition  Published 
May,  1914. 


6  4  $  7 


PBBBS  OF 

E.  W.  STEPHENS  PUBLISH m a  Co. 

COLUMBIA,  MISSOURI 

1914 


Every  fanner  boy  hopes  some  day  to  be  a 

School  Teacher; 

Every  School  Teacher  desires  to  be  an  Editor ; 
Every  Editor  would  like  to  be  a  Banker; 
Every    Banker   is    ambitious    to    be    a    Trust 

Magnate ; 
Every  Trust  Magnate  hopes  some  day  to  own 

a  farm  and  have  chickens  and  cows  and 

horses  to  look  after. 
We  end  where  we  begin,  and  all  goes  back  to 

the  farm. 


(5) 


1 '  There  is  a  distinct  joy  in  owning  a  piece  of 
land  unlike  that  which  you  have  in  money,  in 
houses,  in  books,  in  pictures,  or  in  anything 
which  men  have  devised. 

"Personal  property  brings  you  into  society 
with  men.  But  land  is  Grod's  estate  in  the 
world;  and  when  a  parcel  of  ground  is  deeded 
to  you,  and  you  walk  over  it,  and  call  it  your 
own,  it  seems  as  if  you  had  come  into  partner- 
ship with  the  original  proprietor  of  the  Earth." 

BEECHEB. 


(6) 


PREFACE. 


In  1850  the  Interior  Department  of  our  Gov- 
ernment published  a  report  stating  that  sixty 

per  cent  of  all  land  purchased  by 
Difficulties  early  settlers  prior  to  that  date, 
survey^  was  ^os^  *°  them  through  defective 
and  records  titles.  This  condition  was  due  to 

the  fact  that  the  buyer  was  often 
compelled  to  travel  hundreds  of  miles  to  the 
territorial  capital  or  to  his  own  county  seat; 
and  if  he,  himself  went  horse  back,  or  if  he  sent 
the  deed  by  the  stage  coach  traveler  and  had  it 
duly  recorded,  the  whole  document  was  often 
not  more  than  three  or  four  lines  of  ordinary 
hand  writing,  in  many  instances  failing  to  locate 
the  property  conveyed  by  county  or  state.  The 
early  settlers  in  Ohio  were  compelled  to  have 
their  deeds  recorded  in  Virginia,  eight  hundred 
miles  distant,  with  no  railroad,  mail  or  ex- 
press service  in  operation. 

In  later  years  farms  were  surveyed  by  a  trav- 
eling surveyor  who  had  no  definite  point  from 

where  to  begin  measuring  and  no  ac- 
The  first  curate  means  of  measurement  and 

surveyors.  . 

who  usually  took  his  pay  in  turs  or 
(7) 


8  LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

other  barter,  so  that  very  inaccurate  descrip- 
tions were  the  result. 

Many  farms  in  the  Central  and  Middle  West 

were  in  possession  of  men  whose  only  claim 

to  possession  was  " squatter  rights"  and  whose 

titles  were  never  confirmed.    No  real 

The  early      security  in  land  titles  was  enjoyed 
squatters. 

until  the  abstract  firms  took  up  the 

work  of  tracing  out  titles  through  the  records 
and  assisted  in  the  proper  drafting  of  convey- 
ances, and  this  care  has  saved  to  the  people 
hundreds  of  millions  of  dollars  every  year  es- 
pecially since  about  1860  when  their  work  seems 
to  have  begun. 

There  is  no  other  industry,  trade,  occupa- 
tion or  profession  that  renders  such  herculean 
service  and  at  such  moderate  rates  to  the  Amer- 
ican public  as  the  "  American  Abstracters  of 
Land  Titles. ' '  Few  people  properly 
abstractor,  estimate  the  large  amount  of  work 
required  of  a  title  company  in  pre- 
paring a  complete  abstract.  Only  experts  in 
the  service  are  competent  workmen,  and  often 
the  abstract  to  a  village  lot  will  require  the 
services  of  an  expert  man  for  three  or  four 
daya  in  its  completion. 

The  fact  that  so  few  people  understand  the 
rudiments  of  the  American  method  of  land  sur- 
vey or  the  simple  laws  governing  the  transfer 


PREFACE.  9 

of  land  titles,  led  the  author  to  prepare  the  first 

lessons  of  this  series.  These  early 
The  first  lessons  were  used  as  stated  in  the 
the  subject  preface  to  the  former  editions.1  The 

constant  encouragement  from  those 
who  have  examined  or  used  the  smaller  text,  and 
the  hope  that  a  broader  field  could  be  developed 
for  the  benefit  of  a  large  number  of  people  fi- 
nancially interested  in  real  estate  affairs,  has 
prompted  the  working  out  of  the  present  vol- 
ume. 

It  is  the  hope  of  the  author  that  not  only 
may  the  pupils  and  teachers  in  our  public 
schools  be  helped  by  a  study  of  these  lessons 

but  that  parents  as  well  may  read 
The  use  them  and  thus  prepare  themselves 
volume.  to  conserve  their  investments;  to  be 

guided  in  their  future  purchases  of 
lands  and  to  better  protect  their  estates  of  in- 
heritance for  their  children. 

The  subjects  herein  presented  have  not  here- 
tofore been  arranged  within  a  single  volume  in 
a  simple  treatment,  and  their  method  of  pre- 
sentation now  is  primary  and  general  rather 
than  technical.  The  author  has  not  presumed 
to  write  a  text  for  legal  study  nor  a  reference 
library  for  attorneys  or  examiners,  but  to  so 
present  the  subjects  that  any  reader  may  com- 

1.    See  page  11. 


10          LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

prehend    them.      It  has  been  his  endeavor  to 
help  the  property  owner  know  and 
author**       *°  &ss^  those  who  contemplate  buy- 
ing a  home  to  understand  the  sim- 
pler rules  of  procedure  for  their  own  protec- 
tion. 

The  author  also  hopes  that  the  work  may 
create  a  better  sentiment  from  the  property 
owner  for  the  abstracter,  by  acquainting  him 
with  the  methods  of  the  other,  and  to  intro- 
duce the  land  owner  to  the  principles  of  title 
insurance  and  to  the  work  of  the  examiner. 
Tuscola,  Nov.  1,  1913. 

C.  C.  KAGEY. 


PREFACE  TO  FORMER  EDITIONS. 


Every  citizen  should  know  what  constitutes 
a  title  to  a  farm  or  a  town  lot,  he  should  under- 
stand how  land  is  measured,  how  it  should  be 
described  and  what  protects  his  property  rights. 

That  a  comparatively  small  number  of  peo- 
ple in  every  community  thoroughly  understand 
the  transferring  of  real  estate  titles,  and  that 
few  land  owners  realize  how  their 
information,  fortunes  may  be  affected  by  the 
claims  of  others,  is  the  conviction 
of  the  author  after  many  years  experience  as  a 
teacher  and  later  as  an  active  abstractor  of  ti- 
tles in  the  business  world. 

Within  recent  years  the  values  of  real  prop- 
erty have  increased  to  such  an  extent  that  ac- 
quaintance with  the  simple  rules  and  laws  gov- 
erning the  division  of  land,  the  methods  of  its 
transfer,  etc.,  is  not  only  a  desirable  item  of 
knowledge  to  all,  but  an  imperative  necessity 
if  any  one  is  to  be  truly  safeguarded. 

In  view  of  the  great  importance  of  the  sub- 
ject of  "Land  Surveys  and  Land  Ti- 

?ubjecttbe  tles>"  to  every  citizen,  its  study 
should  form  a  part  of  every  school 
course. 

(11) 


12          LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

It  makes  immediate  and  practical  applica- 
tion of  political  geography  and  civics,  is  inter- 
esting in  itself  and  it  bears  directly  upon  promi- 
nent relations  in  business  and  public  affairs. 
With  the  lapse  of  time  and  the  rapid  advance 
of  land  values,  the  importance  of  this  subject 
will  grow  accordingly. 

Inquiries  from  patrons  in  business  and  teach- 
ers in  the  public  schools  for  information  on 
the  subject,  coupled  with  the  fact  that  no  text- 
book on  the  matter  was  at  hand,  led  the  author 
to  prepare  a  set  of  lessons  covering  the  rudi- 
ments of  our  land  laws  and  practices. 

These  lessons  were  printed  in  two  series  by 
a  local  newspaper  and  used  first  in  the  schools 
of  the  author's  home  county.  Their  signal  suc- 
cess here  led  to  their  publication  in  several  ad- 
joining counties  through  local  jour- 
The  first  nals.  The  demand  for  them  in  more 
ofathesfS  permanent  form  calls  forth  the  pres- 
lessons.  ent  volume,  which  is  arranged  in  two 
parts,  the  first  treating  of  the  me- 
chanical methods  of  survey  and  description, 
and  the  second  dealing  more  with  the  legal  as- 
pect of  titles. 

These  lessons  are  intended  to  be  simply  intro- 
ductory and  general  features  only  are  pre- 
sented. Local  statutes  must  always  be  con- 
sulted for  detail. 


PREFACE  TO  FORMER  EDITION.  13 

For  a  complete  treatise  on  the  subjects  here- 
in presented  the  student  is  referred  to  "  War- 
veil  on  Real  Property"  and  "War- 
other  veil  on  Abstracts,"  two  most  valua- 
thesubject.    ble  works  by  George  W.  Warvell  of 
Chicago,  a  veteran  laborer  in  laws 
of  real  property  and  an  eminent  authority  on 
their  applications. 

The  importance  of  a  reliable  abstract  of  title 
ought  to  be  impressed  on  the  mind  of  every  one 
who  has  to  do  with  real  estate,  and  it  is  hoped 
this  work  will  assist  to  arouse  a  proper  inter- 
est in  the  subject. 

THE  AUTHOR. 
Tuscola,  Illinois,  May,  1910. 


View  Looking  West. 

The  above  cut  illustrates  one  method  of  marking  a  sec- 
tion corner  on  the  prairie  when  a  survey  is  made.  (See 
page  64.) 


OUTLINE  OF  THE  PRESENT  VOLUME. 


PAET  ONE.  This  division  consists  of  ten  sim- 
ple stories  relating  to  facts  and  conditions  as 
they  exist  in  real  estate  titles.  It  is  a  sort  of 
diagnosis  of  the  case  showing  the  need  of  the 
treatment  as  suggested  in  the  next  division. 
(See  page  17.) 

PAET  Two.  This  is  a  complete  explanation 
of  our  system  of  land  survey  as  used  through- 
out most  of  the  United  States.  It  also  treats 
of  how  the  lands  are  conveyed,  how  the  records 
of  conveyances  are  kept  and  how  a  title  is  ex- 
hibited by  the  Abstract.  (See  page  40.) 

PAKT  THREE.  This  section  explains  the  instru- 
ments employed  in  the  transfer  of  ownership 
in  land  and  deals  more  with  the  legal  and  com- 
mercial part  of  land  transactions  rather  than 
with  the  mathematical,  as  did  the  former  di- 
vision. (See  page  159.) 

PAET  FOTJE.  Here  are  included  many  distinct 
subjects,  related  to  real  property  and  to  each 
other  though  not  successively  connected.  Many 
legal  instruments  are  shown  in  miniature,  inter- 
est tables  and  other  tables  useful  to  the  land 
owner  are  given.  A  complete  word  index  of  the 
entire  volume  is  one  very  valuable  feature  of 
this  part;  and,  it  also  contains  an  accurate 
geographical  location  of  all  of  the  Prime  Merid- 
ians governing  the  survey  of  the  United  States. 
(See  page  279.) 

(15) 


ILLUSTRATIONS. 

PAGE 

The  Line  Fence  Dispute — Frontispiece. 
First  township  survey  -  48 
Meridian  and  Base  Line  -  55 
Standard  parallels  -  55 
Guide  Meridians  55 
United  States  and  all  Principal  Meridians  58 
Rectangular  survey  of  a  state  -  -  60 
Original  marking  of  a  corner  -  -  64 
The  United  States,  illustrating  ownership 
at  close  of  the  Revolution  and  our  ter- 
ritorial growth  since  that  time  -  66 
Correction  line  -  69 
Fractional  townships  71 
Section  and  its  parts  73 
Government  lots  in  a  section  -  76 
Modern  method  of  dividing  fractional  sec- 
tions 77 
Section  of  eleven  hundred  acres  -  78 
Section  of  less  than  two  hundred  acres  79 
Regular  township  -  80 
Town  plat -  89 


(16) 


ABB'S  TEACKS.* 


The  morning  mist  was  lifting  over  the  tops 
of  the  cornfields  that  walled  in  the  Interurban 
rails.  Just  one  solitary  passenger  sat  upon  the 
Mourners '  Bench  in  Stop  56,  and  he  was  nearly 
asleep.  His  square  shoulders  were  humped  and 
his  derby  hat,  tilted  down  over  his  eyes,  left 
only  a  gray-black  moustache  for  identification. 

A  sound  smote  upon  his  ear  and  he  snatched 
his  suit  case  and  started  to  his  feet.  No!  It 
was  only  the  rattle  of  an  empty  wagon — and, 
a  high  old-fashioned  voice  singing:  ''Come  ye 
that — bump — your  Lord  and  let  your — bang — 
be  known.  Jine  in  a — bump — with  sweet  a— 
whoa,  Bessie,  whoa!" 

The  would-be  traveler  hurried  out.  "Good 
morning,  Mr.  Davis.  Let  me  help  you  with 
that  big  milk  can — there." 

*  *  Thank  ye,  Barnes,  thank  ye.    It  onwinds  me 
every  time  I  hist  that  can  onto  the  platform. 
Say,  you're  the  very  person  I've  been  wantin' 
to  see." 

"Fine  opportunity,  Uncle  Joe.  The  car's 
late." 

*  "Knowledge  never  learned  of  schools." — Whittier. 

(17) 


18          LAND  SUKVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

"Well,  sir,  I'm  puzzled  about  something." 
Davis  put  a  stout  boot  on  the  wagon  hub  and 
pushed  back  his  hat.    "Awful  puzzled.    Ye  see 
last  week  I    'tended  the   Farmers'   Institoot. 
Went  airly  and  tuck  a  front  seat,  I  did. 
And  the  first  feller  to  take  the  boards 


question      W&S  &  Mg  f  at  woman-     Well>  she  let  a11 

hands  know  that  she  was  going  to  dis- 
cuss domestic  signs,  and  as  I  had  been  obeyin' 
domestic  signs  for  forty  years,  I  rose  up  and 
sought  a  seat  furder  back." 

Barnes  laughed  good-naturedly  and  glanced 
up  and  down  the  silent  track.  "Go  on,  Uncle, 
go  on." 

*  '  You  bet  I  '11  go  on.  The  woman,  she  finished 
her  signs  —  and  wonders  —  and  then  a  little  weaz- 
ened up  man  lit  into  his  subjeck,  'What  a  Far- 
mer Should  Study.'  I  'lowed  there  wasn't  much 
in  him  either,  judgin'  from  his  girth;  so  I 
stayed  back  where  I  was  and  I  couldn't  hear 
very  well  —  and  didn't  care.  But  after  he'd 
squeaked  round  quite  a  spell,  his  voice  suddenly 
shot  up  and  he  hollers  out:  "I'll  wager  that 
50  per  cent  of  you  farmers  wouldn't 
A  new  know  an  Abb's  track  if  you  seen 

kind  of  ,  ,  ,     -r      .  ,     ,  .    .-, 

animal.  one  '  I  picked  up  my  ears  at  that, 
but  from  the  little  I  could  hear,  I 
couldn't  make  out  whether  an  Abb  was  a  fur- 
bearin'  animal  or  a  water  varmint,  nor  what- 
fer  lookin'  track  he  made.  (Say,  have  some 
lickerish  —  it's  fine  fer  a  cough.) 


TEN  TITLE  STORIES.  19 

"Now,  Barnes,  when  ye  git  over  that  barkin' 
fit  I  want  you  to  tell  me  all  about  them  Abb's 
tracks  that  feller  wants  us  farmers  to  study." 

"An  abstract,"  began  Barnes  unsteadily,  "an 
abstract  is  just  a  piece  of  paper  on  which  is 
written — " 

Davis 's  foot  slipped  off  the  wheel.  "Hold  on, 
man!  An  Abb's  track  is  jest  a  piece  of  paper, 
did  ye  say?  Tell  me  again." 

"Yes,  Uncle  Joe,  an  abstract  is  a  piece  of  pa- 
per on  which  is  written  a  brief  but  complete 
history  of  the  title  to  your  land. ' '  He  repeated 
his  definition,  and  waited. 

"Humph!  Is  that  all?  <A-brief-but-com- 
plete-history-of-the-title-to-yore-land. '  Well, 
neighbor,  them  aristocracks  as  keeps  fambly 
trees  and  coats  of  arms  can  have  their  abstracks, 
but  I  won't  have  any  in  mine.  Why,  I  know 
the  history  of  my  farm  fer — : 

"Joel  Davis,  you  are  in  the  wrong,"  Barnes 

interrupted  seriously.    "An  abstract  that  is  an 

abstract  is  valuable,  and  no  property 

A  necessary  •>•>  T    A 

record.          owner  ought  to  be  without  one.   Let 
me  tell  you  an  experience  of  mine. 
First  let  us  go  in  the  shack  and  sit  down — my 
corn  hurts." 

"Fifteen  years  ago,"  resumed  Barnes,  "I 
bought  a  farm  of  a  man  named  Wagner,  and  he 
furnished  me  with  an  abstract  made  by  a  cheap 
attorney.  I  was  like  you  then,  I  didn't  know 


20          LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

there  was  such  a  thing  as  an  abstract,  but 
Wagner  assured  me  that  the  paper  was  all 
right.  I  went  ahead.  The  place  was  run  down 
and  I  had  to  remodel  the  house,  improve  and 
repair  all  the  other  buildings,  even  build  up 
the  soil.  One  morning  I  said  to  Harriet,  'It  is 
five  years  ago  today  since  we  bought  this  farm 
and  it  is  worth  twice  as  much  as  it  was  then. ' 

"Course  it  was,"  assented  the  old  man,  "an 
mebby  more!" 

"Well,  that  very  afternoon,  Uncle  Joe,  a  fel- 
low came  to  my  door  and  said  that  he  had  a 
first  mortgage  on  my  farm  and  that  he  was  go- 
ing to  foreclose.  It  was  his  farm,  he  said." 

"I'd  a-knocked  him  down  with  a  clabboard," 
shouted  Davis.  "Whoa,  thar,  Bessie.  I'll  tie 
her  a  leetle  f urder  away — and  look  f er  the  car. ' ' 

"It's  not  in  sight?  Thank  you.  No;  I  couldn't 
have  knocked  the  man  down  with  anything,  but 
he  could  have  laid  me  out  with  a  straw,  the  first 
minute.  Then  I  said  quietly,  'You're  mistaken; 
I  paid  cash  for  this  place  and  I  have  never 
given  a  mortgage  or  lien  on  the  property.  I'm 
here  to  stay,  stranger.'  My  temper  was  com- 
ing up  and  I  felt  stronger.  The  fellow  shot  a 
keen  glance  at  me  from  under  his  cap  beak  and 
asked  if  I  could  show  him  a  good  abstract  of 
title.  Sure,  I  can,  I  told  him ;  and  brought  the 
paper  from  my  desk.  He  looked  it  over  and 
said  dryly,  'That  is  a  mighty  poor  abstract, 
Mr.  Barnes.  Here  in  the  description  it  says : 


TEN  TITLE  STORIES.  21 

The  West  Half  of  the  Northwest  Quarter  of 
Section  Number  Eighteen  (18),  Township  Num- 
ber Twenty  (20)  North,  Range  Number  Nine 
(9),  East  of  the  2nd  P.M. 

And  it  should  be  (here  he  pulled  a  paper  from 
his  pocket  and  read) : 

Government  Lot  Number  Two  (2)  of  the 
Northwest  Quarter  of  Section  18-20-9  East  of 
2d  P.  M. 

"Then  right  here,"  the   stranger  went  on, 

"here  in  Number  10  is  where  I  come  in.     At 

this  time,  1896,  Mr.  James  D.  Keg- 

His  flrst        ly  bought  this  place  and  he  borrowed 

great  lesson    ^  Arv«     „  ,-p,       ,  , 

in  finance.  $1,000  irom  me  (Bradshaw  is  my 
name),  and  he  gave  me  a  first  mort- 
gage on  his  farm,  now  yours;  and  that  mort- 
gage has  never  been  satisfied."  Barnes  step- 
ped out  to  look  up  the  track. 

"How'd  ye  come  out — how'd  ye  come  out?" 
Davis  called  excitedly  after  him. 

"Why,  I  came  out  in  a  hole,  of  course," 
Barnes  answered  as  he  took  his  seat  once  more. 
'  *  This  man,  Bradshaw,  was  a  surveyor  and  had 
been  up  in  Canada  surveying  for  a  railroad  for 
years.  When  he  returned  Kegly  was  dead,  but 
he  had  sold  the  farm  to  Wagner,  and  Wagner 
sold  to  me.  Whether  Wagner  and  his  cheap 
lawyer  knew  of  that  mortgage,  and  some  other 
little  things  that  were  left  out,  I  don't  know. 
I  do  know  that  I  compromised  for  $1,000  cold 
cash." 


22          LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

"Say,  neighbor,"  the  old  man  spoke  slowly, 
"how  much  would  a — an  abstrack  a-cost  you  in 
the  first  place,  an  abstrack  made  by  an  honest 
feller  edgicated  up  to  his  job?" 

*  *  Not  over  $50,  Uncle ;  and  for  the  lack  of  it, 
I  lost  $1,000." 

"But  ye  wouldn't  a-knowed  whether  yer  ab- 
.strack  was  good  or  bad,  would  ye?"  persisted 
Davis. 

"No,  I  wouldn't — in  those  days;  but  it  is  dif- 
ferent now.  The  institute  instructor 
A  new  way  Was  right.  Every  man,  yes,  every 
money8  child,  ought  to  study  land  titles  and 
land  surveys  so  he  would  know  if  his 
abstract  was  complete  and  reliable.  Don't  you 
think  so,  too?" 

"I — I — reckon  he  ort,"  admitted  Uncle  Joe 
solemnly.  "And  I  reckon  I'll  have  to  go  to 
studyin'.  But  I  aint  got  anything  to  study," 
he  added  helplessly. 

Barnes  knit  his  heavy  brows.  "I  don't  know 
the  name  of  any  textbook,"  he  said  "but  the 
subject  is  being  taught  in  the  more  up-to-date 
schools.  Say,  while  I  am  on  my  trip —  With 
a  leap  he  made  the  side  of  the  track  and  sig- 
naled, and  then  ran  after  the  car  as  it  slowed 
down  to  let  him  on. 

Joel  Davis  climbed  into  his  little  wagon  like 
a  man  in  a  dream  and  sat  there  smoothing  his 
paint  brush  beard,  the  lines  limp  in  his  hands. 


TEN  TITLE  STOEIES.  23 

"A  thousand  dollars,"  he  muttered,  "a  thou- 
sand dollars  *  *  a  thousand  hard-earned 
dollars ! ' ' 

The  horse  whinnied  to  be  gone.    "Gid  ap,  old 

girl,  we'll  just  turn  round  and  go  straight  back 

home  instid  of  goin'  to  Newsoms  fer  that  pig; 

'nother  day  will  do  fer  the  pig.     A 

"Go  and        thousand  dollars — git  a  move  on  ye, 

likewise."      Bessie.    Yessir,  I'll  go  home  and  put 

on  my  biled  shirt  and  my  Sunday 

pants.  *  *  *  A  thousand  hard-earned  dollars!" 

Two  hours  later  a  lean,  but  very -clean  old 
farmer  tiptoed  across  the  tile  floor  of  a  city 
office.  Not  until  he  set  his  whip  carefully  in  the 
corner  did  he  lift  his  head  to  greet  the  firm. 
"You're  Jones  &  Hacker,  air  ye?  Well,  I'm 
one  Joel  G.  Davis  from  Sandcrick  Township. 
Obligeed  to  ye!  I'm  powerful  glad  myself  to 
meet  you,  too,  fer  the  bank  fellers  tells  me  that 
you  can  make  an  abs track  that'll  run  clean  back 
to  the  first  grant  to  Adam  and  Eve,  and  make  it 
right.  I'm  ready  to  pay  fer  it,  too,"  and  he 
slapped  his  Sunday  pocket  reassuringly. 

"We  guarantee  our  abstracts,  Mr.  Davis," 
said  Hacker,  the  junior  member  of  the  firm,  pro- 
ducing a  map.  "First  thing  is  to  locate  your 
land."  That  done,  he  asked  for  the  client's  ad- 
dress. 

"No  need  of  that,"  said  Davis,  reaching  for 
his  whip.  "  I  '11  be  in  town  a  half  hour,  or  more, 


24          LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

and  I'll  just  drop  round  and  get  the  abstrack 
on  my  way  out." 

It  took  some  time  to  explain  that  the  length 
of  time  required  to  make  a  good  abstract  de- 
pended on  the  number  of  links  in  the  chain 
and  how  hard,  or  easy,  these  links  might  be  to 
trace.  "Now,  yours  might  take  three  days  or 
three  weeks,"  Hacker  concluded. 

The  farmer  heaved  a  sigh  that  brought  up 
cracker  crumbs.  "Sometimes  an  old  dog  has 
to  learn  new  tricks  whether  he  kin  er  not, ' '  and 
he  gave  his  address  with  a  meekness  that  would 
have  done  his  wife  good  to  see. 

During  the  following  week  the  grass  had  no 
chance  to  grow  between  the  Davis  home  and 
the  rural  mail  box.  There  was  only  one  deliv- 
ery a  day,  it  is  true,  but  every  time  Uncle  Joe 
thought  "abstrack"  he  took  the  trail.  The  sev- 
enth day  he  was  rewarded  with  an  envelope  of 
formidable  proportions  and  the  name  of  Jones 
&  Hacker  well  up  in  the  northwest  corner. 

"What  did  ye  git,  pa;  something  important?" 
asked  the  old  lady  as  that  gentleman  snatched 
his  spectacles  from  the  clock  shelf. 

' '  Never  you  mine, ' '  he  replied  testily,  making 
a  bee  line  for  the  back  door  and  thence  to  his 
favorite  retreat  under  the  Rambo,  where  he 
picked  up  the  old  splint-bottom  hickory  chair 
and  socked  it  down  with  its  back  to  the  house. 


TEN  TITLE  STORIES.  25 

After  much  spelling  aloud,  syllable  at  a  time, 
and  going  back  again  and  again,  the  old  man 
beat  out  the  following  letter: 

MB.  JOEL  G.  DAVIS, 

Eural  Route  9, 

Boneset,  Indiana. 
My  dear  Sir: 

Enclosed  you  will  find  an  abstract  of  title  to 
the  Northwest  Quarter  Section  Ten  (10),  Town- 
ship Sixteen  (16)  North,  Range  Eight  (8),  East 
of  the  Third  Prime  Meridian,  Brown  County, 
Indiana.  This  abstract  is  complete  from  the 
U.  S.  grant  to  your  purchase,  save  in  one  trans- 
action. 

Please  notice  on  page  nine,  in  the  transaction 
immediately  preceding  your  own,  that  the  in- 
strument is  lacking  in  acknowledgment.  We 
have  been  unable  to  trace  these  omissions,  and 
we  advise  you  to  hunt  up  parties  at  once  to 
remedy  this  error.  It  might  cause  you  serious 
trouble  some  time,  and  the  title  is  faulty  until 
this  is  complete.  If  you  cannot  correct  these 
omissions  in  the  deed  before  your  own,  yours 
could  be  declared  void.  As  soon  as  you  secure 
the  desired  information,  we  will  correct  page 
nine  and  also  the  record  in  the  recorder's  office. 
Very  truly  yours, 

JONES  &  HACKER. 

The  next  thing  was  to  find  page  9.  After 
much  fumbling  and  peering  and  comparing,  the 


26          LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

right  page  was  finally  selected  in  spite  of  the 
fact  that  the  "figger  was  turned  hind  side  be- 
fore." Then  the  double  process  went  on  as  be- 
fore, and  Davis  read: 

• 

Thomas  Meredith,  single,  of  Bedlands,  Cal. 

to 
Charles  F.  Hariley,  of  Boneset,  Indiana. 

Instrument — Warranty  Deed. 
Dated  June  30,  1895. 
Filed  July  15,  1895. 

Consideration,  $2,000  cash  and  note  $500  due 
January  1,  1896. 

Acknowledged  before — 

CONVEYS. 

Northwest  Quarter  of  Section  Ten  (10),  Town- 
ship Sixteen  (16)  North,  Range  Eight  (8), 
East  of  the  3d  Principal  Meridian  as  shown 
by  the  Land  Book  in  the  office  of  Recorder  of 
Brown  Co.,  Indiana. 

For  a  full  minute,  Davis  sat  like  one  stunned, 
then  he  jumped  to  his  feet,  threw  the  letter  at 
the  grind  stone  and  swore — rather  awkwardly, 
it  must  be  admitted,  but  the  effort  was  not  lack- 
ing in  spirit. 

In  the  weeks  that  followed,  the  Sunday  clothes 
were  in  daily  use  and  the  mail  box  was  never 


TEN  TITLE  STOBIES.  27 

empty.  After  a  long,  troublesome 
cnase>  Charles  Hanley,  of  page  9  was 
located  in  Pensacola,  Florida.  From 
him  the  original  deed  was  secured,  and  rare 
good  fortune  it  was,  and  they  learned  that  it 
was  a  warranty  deed  acknowledged  before  M.  T. 
Shane,  notary  public  of  Brown  County,  Indi- 
ana. The  deed  was  recorded,  corrections  all 
made,  everything  secure. 

Davis  beamed.  "I  aint  felt  so  free  sense  I 
was  mustered  out  of  the  War,"  he  declared. 
And  straightway  he  hooked  up,  threw  a  crate 
in  the  wagon. and  set  out  for  Newsoms. 

"You  orta-brought  a  bigger  crate,  Joe," 
panted  Newsom  as  they  pushed  the  crate  fur- 
ther into  the  wagon,  "a  lots  bigger  crate." 

"Why,  Fatty,  yer  crazy!  The  pig  can  turn 
clean  round  in  this  crate;  see!" 

"Yes,  he  can  today,  but  if  yer  as  long  takin' 
the  pig  home  as  ye  was  comin'  after  it — " 

"I  have  been  awful  long,  and  I'll  tell  you 
what  kep'  me.  Let's  set  on  the  fence  here.  You 
see  the  very  day  I  started  up  here,  I  stopped 
at  56  to  leave  the  milk  and  there  was  Steve 
Barnes  waitin'  fer  a  car.  The  talk  we  had  got 
me  into  the  all-firedest  mess  of  abstractin — ." 
And  he  told  him  the  whole  story. 

Newsom  picked  his  teeth  with  a  splinter  and 
occasionally  interjected  an  "umph-huh"  or  a 
"tut-tut"  into  the  recital,  but  he  kept  his  place 


28          LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

on  the  fence  in  spite  of  the  vigorous  gestures 
that  broke  out  in  the  tragic  portions.  When 
the  story  ended,  he  threw  away  the  toothpick 
and  asked:  "Can  ye  stay  a  bit  longer?  I'd 
like  to  onlimber  my  mind ! ' ' 

Uncle  Joe  settled  back  on  the  soft  rail  and 
jerked  a  long  thumb  in  the  direction  of  home: 
"They  are  cleanin'  house  over  there;  IVe  got 
all  the  time  they  is ! " 

"Good,  then  here  goes.  Twenty  year  ago 
come  next  March,  I  bought  this  place  of  old 
Dan  Morris.  You  remember  him?  Well,  I'd 
knowed  him  all  my  life,  so  we  just  swopped  the 
cash  fer  the  land  and  he  gimme  his  deed  signed 
by  him  and  his  woman.  They  moved  to  town 
and—" 

"Pore  Dan,"  sighed  Davis,  "pore  old  Dan, 
he  wa'n't  raised  in  captivity  and  the  town  soon 
killed  him!" 

"It  did  that.  He  died  afore  corn  shuckin' 
that  fall,  and  they  settled  the  estate  and  all  lit 
out  fer  the  west.  All  happened  in  less  than  a 
year  after  I  bought  their  farm. 
Well,  we  toiled  and  delved  here  twen- 
found  in  ty  long  years  a-buildin'  it  up  into 
county.  one  of  the  garden  spots  of  the  state, 
when  along  comes  a  gander-eyed 
young  feller  in  high  boards  and  pressed  pants 
and  he  ann-nounced  that  this  here  section  be- 
longed to  him  and  a  brother  and  a  sister  of  his'n, 


TEN  TITLE  STORIES.  29 

He  had  an  abstractor  with  him  and  a  raft  of  pa- 
pers to  prove  his  claim.  Set  still,  Joe,  or  ye '11 
tear  yer  garments  on  the  splinters.  Well,  sir,  I 
never  stopped  to  grease  my  boots  or  comb  my 
hair.  I  jist  jumped  into  their  autum-bill  and 
tore  back  to  town  with  'em,  and  took  my  deed 
to  Lawyer  Beck — " 

"Beck's  a  good  lawyer,  Beck  is,"  put  in  Da- 
vis. 

"Yes,  he  is;  Beck's  a  good  lawyer.  So  Beck, 
he  took  me  into  his  private-speakin'  office  and 
told  me  that  the  abstractor  they  had  with  'em, 
Cooper  was  his  name,  was  the  simon  pure  arti- 
cle, and  he  feared  my  title  was  defective  after 
all.  Then  we  jined  the  others  and  all  trooped 
over  to  the  courthouse  and  burrowed  through 
records  and  deeds  and  wills  fer  three  days,  and 
by  gum,  Joe,  they  had  me!"  Newsom  stopped, 
his  face  working  strangely. 

"Have  a  chaw  of  lickerish,  Fatty;  it's  mighty 
good  lickerish." 

"Thank  ye.  Yes,  they  had  me.  The  papers 
showed  that  way  back  in  the  sixties,  long  be- 
fore Morris's  time,  a  feller  by  the  name  of  Ja- 
cob Hull  owned  the  farm,  and  when  he  died,  he 
willed  it  to  his  daughter,  Mrs.  Jane 
Many  Thomas,  and  heirs  of  her  body.  Jane 

hlveletities     soon  £°*  ^re^  °$  fannin'  without  a 

no  better,     man,  so  she  sold  the  place  to  our  Dan 

Morris  and  give  him  a  deed.    Drat 


30          LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

her!  Why,  she  had  no  more  right  to  sell  the 
farm  than  she  had  to  sell  the  courthouse." 

"Aint  that  like  em?"  snorted  Davis,  "and 
they  want  to  vote ! ' ' 

"As  fur  as  that  is  concerned,  Joe,  ye  can 
match  every  fool  woman  with  a  fool  man.  But 
pore  ole  Dan,  he  died  a-believin'  the  deal  was 
all  right.  And  I  worked  twenty  years  in  bliss, 
until  that  ganglin'  grandson  of  Jane's  bobbed 
up."  Newsom  stopped  talking  and  looked  the 
misery  he  was  living  over  in  his  mind. 

The  listener  squirmed  and  coughed  and  final- 
ly put  his  question  in  cold  English:  "How'd 
ye  settle?" 

"The  only  way  there  was  to  settle.  01'  Mrs. 
Jane  was  in  her  grave,  and  it  was  up  to  me  to 
file  suit  to  quiet  title,  or  compromise.  No,  I 
won't  tell  ye  how  much  it  cost  me.  It  was 
enough,  and  more  than  I  could  afford.  Oh,  if  I 
had  only  knowed  enough  to  demand  an  abstract 
of  Morris.  But  I  didn't." 

The  lickerish  passed  between  the  old  boys  and 
they  chewed  in  silence  for  a  while. 

"It  seems  to  me,  Newsom,  that  I'd  a-moved 
onto  Dari  Morris's  heirs  afore  I'd  a  turned  my 
pocketbook  over  to  them  grandchildren  of 
Jane's." 

"No;  I  wasn't  goin'  to  beat  up  the  cactus  out 
west  lookin'  fer  no  heirs.  Mrs.  Morris  sent  the 
hull  passel  through  college,  and  I  don't  suppose 


TEN  TITLE  STORIES.  31 

there  was  a  dura  copper  left.  I  don't  know  as 
I  could  a-got  the  law  on  'em  anyhow.  Seems 
to  me  I  hear  wheels." 

Davis  hopped  nimbly  to  the  ground  and 
climbed  into  his  wagon.  "I  must  be  goin'  or 
that  pig  will  outgrow  his  crate,  sure  enough." 

' '  Hold  on,  Mr.  Davis. ' '  It  was  the  mail  car- 
rier. "If  you  will  deliver  your  own  mail,  it 
will  save  me  a  good  two  miles.  Thank  you." 

"  Hooty-tooty,  if  it  aint  a  pictur  postal,  and 
I'm  as  curuss  as  a  woman  to  know  who  sent  it 
Say,  Fatty,  lend  me  your  specks.  Time  ye  was 
gettin'  off  yer  roost  anyhow.  Why,  I  can  see 
through  yore  specks  better 'n  I  can  my  own !  The 
pictur  is  of  the  National  Park  Sem-i-nary,  at 
Washington,  D.  C.  Well,  well !  I  wonder — who 
—oh,  it's  from  Barnes,  the  very  feller  I  was 
tellin'  you  about.  I  mind  now— 

"Let's  have  the  reading,"  suggested  New- 
som. 

Davis  pawed  his  beard  thoughtfully.  "What 
I  did  read  to  ye  was  printin' — the  rest  of  it  is 
aimed  to  be  writin'.  Hum-m-m,  Barnes  aint 
much  of  a  scribe  if  he  is  sich  a  scholard."  He 
looked  over  the  tops  of  the  glasses  at  New- 
som:  "I  'low,  Fatty,  I'd  better  kind  o'  chaw 
it  over  to  myself  first  and  then  read  it  out  to 
you. ' ' 

And  chaw  it  over  he  did,  while  Newsom  beat 
the  dust  out  of  his  cap,  and  smiled. 


32          LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

"Now  lis&en,  Brother.     It's  worth  hearin': 

'Dear  Sir:      In  the  Business  Law  classes  of 

the    National    Park    Sem-i-nary, 

recommendation  the7    use    a    book    called    "Land 

for  this  work,       Survey  and  Land  Titles  "  by  C.  C. 

and  founded          T^  T ,     .       „  r\    T         i 

on  fact  Kagey.  It  is  fine.  Ordered  a 

copy  for  you.  Barnes.' 

* '  Now,  what  do  you  think  of  that ! ' '  exclaimed 
Davis,  waving  the  card  over  his  head.  "Whoa, 
Bessie ! ' ' 

"I  think  I'll  have  to  loan  you  my  specks  to 
read  that  book  with,"  and  Newsom  smiled  out 
loud. 

"Got  it  on  me  this  time.  Here's  yer  specks, 
but  just  the  same,  there's  two  powerful  good 
jokes  on  me  that  you  don't  know — and  never 
will."  Davis  drove  off  chuckling. 

Newsom  waddled  through  the  gate  and  ad- 
justed the  pin,  looked  back  at  the  cloud  of  dust, 
rubbed  his  bald  spot  meditatively.  Then  he 
waddled  down  to  the  barn,  whistling  an  air  that 
only  the  horses  knew.  It  was  time  to  feed. 

A  farmer's  life  runs  pretty  much  in  the  same 
groove.  Barnes  and  Davis  met  again  in  the 
early  fall  at  Stop  56,  and  again  they  "histed" 
the  milk  can  to  its  platform. 

1 '  I  seen  ye  over  at  the  Wildwood  Church  yis- 
tiddy,"  said  Davis,  "and  I  wanted  to  step  over 
and  pass  the  time  o'  day  with  ye,  but  Mother 
was  a-snifflin',  so  I  stayed  back  with  her  to  kind 
o'  comfort  her." 


TEN  TITLE  STORIES.  33 

Barnes  remembered  how  like  a  Ponderosa  the 
father's  own  nose  had  shone,  but  he  side-step- 
ped that  issue  and  asked  a  question  that  he 
could  have  answered  himself.  "Wasn't  the 
groom  your  youngest  son,  Uncle  Joe!" 

"Yes,  the  youngest;  and  the  last  child  to  leave 
home.  Mother,  ahem!  she'll  miss  the  boy  a 
powerful  sight.  I — what  do  ye  s'pose  I  give 
Bob  fer  his  weddin'  present?" 

"A  Bible?"  ventured  Barnes. 

"No;  his  ma  give  him  that.  I  give  him  the 
companion  piece,  a  copy  of  'Land  Survey  and 
Land  Titles.'  I  want  my  boy  to 
know  an  Abb's  track  when  he  sees 
one.  I  want  him  to  be  prepared 
when  he  buys  a  home  to  know  something  about 
a  title  and  not  be  caught  for  a  thousand  dollars 
or  so  extra." 


1.  It  cost  Barnes  ' '  one  thousand  hard-earned 
dollars"  because  he  had  no  reliable  abstract. 

2.  Davis  profited  by  Barnes'  experience  and 
saved  himself  an  expensive  lawsuit. 

3.  Newsom  had  to  pay  for  his  farm  a  sec- 
ond time  because  he  had  not  required  an  ab- 
stract. 

NOTE. — Some  may  think  the  above  items  se- 
lected from  the  story  are  mere  fictions,  yet  each 
incident  is  founded  on  actual  fact,  with  only  the 

3 


34          LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

names  changed.  "Barnes"  comes  from  Bour- 
bon township.  "Davis"  is  in  Tuscola  and 
"Newsom"  belongs  to  Murdock.  Here  are 
some  others  not  included  in  the  above. 

4.  Eecently  a  citizen  of  Delta  County,  Mis- 
sissippi, contracted  to  sell  his  plantation  of  482 
acres,  the  purchase  money  to  be  paid  cash  as 
soon  as  the  title  could  be  approved.  He  at  once 
ordered   an   abstract   which   when    completed 
disclosed  he  had  no  title  to  a  part  of  the  farm 
on  which  valuable  buildings  were  located.    As 
the  original  owner  of  this  part  had  died  a 
few  months  before,  it  took  several  weeks  to  se- 
cure necessary  quit  claim  deeds  from  the  heirs 
in  order  to  correct  the  defect.    The  loss  in  time 
and  interest  on  the  payment  deferred  amounted 
to  much  more  than  the  expense  of  an  abstract. 
An  abstract  ordered  a  year  ago,  would  have 
saved  time  and  loss,  the  original  party  then  be- 
ing able  to  complete  the  missing  record. 

5.  A  man  had  lived  on  his  farm  for  nearly 
thirty  years.    His  title  was  one  day  contested 
by  a  stranger  and  the  suit  disclosed  that  some 
seventy  years  before  the  real  owner  had  been 
committed  to  an  asylum,  where  he  lived  to  the 
extreme  old  age  of  ninety  years.    Dying,  he  left 
one  heir,  a  nephew,  then  a  mere  boy.    This  heir 
after  becoming  of  age  became  the  successful 
contestant  for  the  property  and  the  supposed 


TEN  TITLE  STOBIES.  35 

owner  lost  his  farm.  An  abstract  required  at 
the  time  of  his  purchase  would  have  saved  him 
his  home.  (Illinois.) 

6.  A  property  owner  bought  a  farm  and 
erected  thereon  expensive  improvements.  Some 
two  years  afterward  he  ordered  an  abstract 
and  discovered  his  deed  located  his  land  eighty 
rods  too  far  east;  in  fact  he  had  no  title  to  his 
property  owing  to  the  misdescription.    Fortu- 
nately his  grantor  was  yet  living  and  a  new 
deed  would  be  secured  correcting  the  error. 
(Bowdre  township.) 

7.  Mr.  H.  bought  a  property  without  an  ab- 
stract.   His  grantor  related  every  owner  from 
the  Government  down,  as  A.  the  original  owner 
to  his  daughter,  she  to  Mr.  B.,  he  to  Mr.  C.,  the 
banker,  etc.    Later  Mr.  H.  ordered  an  abstract 
and  the  record  disclosed  that  Mr.  A.  had  deeded 
the  property  to  his  daughter  ''and  the  heirs  of 
her  body."     She  had  no  right  to  sell,  except 
her  life  estate  and  Mr.  H.  was  caught  like  New- 
som.    (It  happened  in  Douglas  County.) 

8.  Some  years  ago  Mr.  G.  purchased  a  quar- 
ter section  of  land  but  the  squire  in  drafting 
the  deed  made  the  conveyance  read  the  south- 
west quarter  instead  of  the  southed  as  was 
intended.    Many  years  afterward  the  owner  or- 
dered an  abstract  and  the  error  was  discovered. 
It  cost  a  two  hundred  dollar  lawsuit  to  reform 
the  deed,  which  the  abstract  ordered  when  the 


36          LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

sale  was  completed  would  have  saved.  The 
original  grantor  had  died  in  the  meantime. 
(Tuscola  Township.) 

9.  Mr.    W.    had   purchased   a   farm   worth 
$30,000.    Subsequently  he  ordered  an  abstract 
and  it  disclosed  he  had  no  legal  title  at  all  to 
the  property.     He  secured  a  quit  claim  deed 
from  the  eight  heirs  of  a  former  owner  and 
completed  the  matter.    Luckily  the  heirs  were 
all  living  but  every  family  is  not  so  long  lived 
as  to  reach  ninety.    Had  he  waited  another  few 
weeks,  it  might  have  been  quite  expensive  for 
him.    (Sargent  Township.) 

10.  Mr.  K.  bought  a  property  without  de- 
manding an  abstract  for  examination.       His 
grantor  assured  him  the  title  was  good,  so  the 
deal  was  closed.    Subsequently  he  had  to  pay 
nearly  thirty  dollars  extra  for  back  taxes  and 
stand  the  expense  of  an  abstract  himself,  as 
well.    (Murdock  Township.) 

The  incidents  above  have  come  under  the  ob- 
servation of  the  author  during  his  practice  and 
actual  labor  of  compiling  abstracts  of  title. 
There  is  no  way  to  determine  the  true  condi- 
tion of  a  title  except  by  means  of  an  abstract. 
The  original  instrument  may  have  been  correct 
and  the  error  might  occur  in  the  recording,  or 
the  deed  may  never  have  been  recorded  at  all. 
Less  than  thirty  days  ago  a  deed  executed  in 
1866  was  discovered  and  put  of  record ;  it  saved 


TEN  TITLE  STOEIES.  37 

the  expense  of  a  costly  suit  to  quiet  title.  Have 
you  a  reliable  up-to-date  abstract  so  that  you 
may  rest  assured  you  are  not  in  the  same  posi- 
tion with  the  man  described  in  the  poem  below. 

AN  ABSTEACTEE'S  STOEY. 


He  dropped  into  the  office  in  a  casual  kind  of  way, 
'Twas  a  "sort  of  social  visit,"  and  he'd   "nothing  much 

to  say." 

He  was  "glad  to  see  us  busy."    With  a  twinkle  in  his  eye 
He  cajoled  about  a  title  "to  a  mansion  in  the  sky." 
That  turned  the  conversation  to  the  work  we  had  in  hand, 
And  the  many  ways  a  fellow  could  be  dispossessed  of  land. 
"I  shall  never  have  to  worry,  it's  lucky  dog  I  am; 
I  can  easily  remember  when  it  was  that  Uncle  Sam 
Gave  that  tract  I   own,   fee  simple,  straight  to  William 

Wallace  Dunn 

For  the  wearin'  of  a  uniform  and  totin'  of  a  gun. 
Bet  you  could  make  an  abstract  on  a  solitary  sheet, 
For  the  land's  had  but  four  owners — it's  a  title  hard  to 

beat. 
Just  suppose  you  make  me  up  one,  you  will  see  that  I 

am  right; 
It  should  cost  about  two  dollars;  you  can  get  it  done  by 

night" 
Thankfully  we  booked  the  order;  then  our  famous  search 

began, 
And  we  trailed  that  forty  acres  through  the  history  of 

man. 

We  soon  gathered  from  the  record  that  a  sole  surviving  son 
Of  a  former  owner  sold  it,  though  he  wasn't  twenty-one. 
Then  the  land  was  sold  for  taxes,  though  not  advertised 

it  seemed, 


38          LAND  SUBVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

And  the  State  assumed  the  title,  as  the  land  was  not  re- 
deemed. 

The  State  then  parted  with  it  to  a  man  by  name  of  Lloyd, 
Then  the  court  decreed  the  tax  sale  was  a  nullity  and  void. 
The  claimant  to  the  homestead  when  the  forfeit  was  de- 
clared 
Had  gone  to  glory  meantime,  but  had   several  children 

spared. 

The  children  sought  division,  in  the  courts,  of  the  estate. 
And  the  many  days  of  wrangle  is  a  tale  I'll  not  relate. 
At  this  juncture,  intervention  by  said  "sole  surviving  son," 
Changed  the  aspect  of  the  pleadings  and  the  intervenor 

won. 

He  compromised  through  pity,  gave  the  litigants  a  deed, 
But  his  wife  was  not  a  party,  was  not  even  asked  to  plead. 
To  abbreviate  the  story:     There  were  many  out's  and  in's 
In  the  title,  'twas  an  endless  string  of  sins 
Of  omission  and  commission,  and  the  record  was  as  long 
As  the  moral  law's  reputed  in  antiquated  song. 
When  our  customer,  days  later,  in  a  casual  kind  of  way 
Dropped  in  to  make  inquiry,  "just  to  pass  the  time  away," 
It  was  sad  to  see  the  tear  drops  as  they  gathered  in  his 

eyes 
When  we  said,   "Your  only  title's  to  a  mansion   in   the 

skies." 
Now  dear  reader,  let  us  caution,  just  to  stop  awhile  and 

ponder 
On  the  money,  you've  invested,  either  down  here  or  up 

yonder, 
Could  you  answer  your  abstractor,  that  your  title's  clear 

today, 

If  the  sheriff,  or  St.  Peter,  called  to  have  you  make  your 
say? 


PAET  TWO. 

This  division  gives  a  complete  explanation  of 
the  method  of  land  survey  as  nsed  throughout 
most  of  the  United  States.  It  also  treats  of 
how  lands  are  conveyed,  how  the  records  of  con- 
veyances are  preserved  and  how  the  title  to  a 
property  is  exhibited  by  the  abstract. 


ABBAHAM  LINCOLN  said: 

"I  will  study  and  get  ready  and  some  day 
my  chance  will  come." 


(39) 


SUBJECTS  OF  SECOND  DIVISION. 

PAGE 

1.  Measurements  -  41 

2.  History  of  Our  Survey  System  -        -  46 

3.  Meridians  and  Base  Lines    -  -  51 

4.  Rectangular  Survey  System,  Illustrated  59 

5.  The  Township  and  Sections  -  67 

6.  The  Section  and  its  Parts  -  -  73 

7.  Town  Lots  and  Subdivisions  -  82 

8.  Description  of  Land    -  -  90 

9.  Deficient  Descriptions  -  -  97 

10.  Origin   of   Individual    Ownership  -  103 

11.  Exchange  of  Ownership  -  110 

12.  Record  of  Ownership    -  -  116 

13.  The  Abstract  of  Title  Defined  -  122 

14.  Need  of  an  Abstract    -  -  130 

15.  The  Abstract  and  the  Abstracter  -  136 

16.  A  Sample  Abstract  of  Title  -        -  -  142 


(40) 


CHAPTER  I. 

MEASUBEMENTS. 


Long  or  Lineal  Measure. 

12      inches  make  one  foot  (ft). 

3      feet  make  one  yard  (yd.)  or  pace. 

6%  yards  make  one  rod  (rd.)  perch  or  pole. 
40      rods  make  one  furlong  (fur.). 

8      furlongs  (320  rods)  make  one  mile  (mi.). 

3      miles  make  one  league. 

Also — 
7.92      inches  make  one  link. 

25      links  make  one  rod. 
100      links  (4  rods)  make  one  chain. 

80      chains  make  one  mile. 


Land  or  Square  Measure. 

square  inches  make  one  square  foot  (sq.  ft.), 
square  feet  make  one  square  yard  (sq.  yd.). 
30*4  square  yards  make  one  square  rod  (sq.  rd.), 

perch  or  pole. 

40      square  rods  make  one  rood. 
4      roods  make  one  acre  (A.). 
640      acres  make  one  square  mile  (sq.  ml.). 
36      square  miles  make  one  township  (tp.)- 
Also — 

625      square  links  make  one  pole. 
16      poles  make  one  square  chain. 
10      square  chains  make  one  acre. 
43560      square  feet  make  one  acre. 
10      square  feet  make  one  square. 

(41) 


42          LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

In  beginning  the  study  of  land  survey  it  is 

necessary  to  know  the  above  tables  and  terms. 

These  tables  and  measurements  are 

section         universally    used     throughout    the 

survey  is       United    States    except  in    rare    in- 
used. 

stances  where  the  metric  system  is 

employed  (see  part  IV).     Some  of  the  terms 
however  are  not  mentioned  in  present  day  sur- 
veying but  are  often  found  in  public  records  or 
in  instruments  of  land  transfer  of  former  days. 
A  "pace"  was  the  common  unit  of  measure 
when  it  was  the  custom  to  "step  off"  a  farm 
or  lot  in  case  of  a  land  sale.    This 

The  pace.  , 

system  has  given  way  to  more  exact 
methods,  since  land  values  have  so  increased, 
that  now  measurements  are  often  recorded  to 
the  fractional  part  of  an  inch. 

"Perch"  and  "pole"  are  terms  not  now  in 
common  use  though  they  were  employed  in  giv- 
ing land  measurements  some  years  ago,  and  are 
each  equal  in  length  to  one  rod. 

"Furlongs"  are  seldom  mentioned  since  the 
equal  fractional  parts  of  a  mile  are  used  in- 
stead, and  we  say  "half  a  quarter"  rather  than 
"a  furlong."  This  term  originated  among  the 
tenants  under  the  feudal  system  in  England 
when  there  was  parceled  to  the  peasantry  the 
land  in  acre  tracts  of  four  rods  wide,  and  forty 
rods  long  for  "convenience  in  plowing." 
Forty  rods  was  considered  the  distance  the  oxen 


MEASUREMENTS.  43 

could  plow  a  furrow  without  resting,  hence  the 
term  a  ''furrow  long"  or  furlong. 

A  *  *  league "  is  a  nautical  term  and  is  usually 

used  to  measure  distance  at  sea.    When  applied 

to  land  measure  it  refers  to  a  meas- 

measurend     ure    °^   1&&&  as    used   by    Spanish 

measure,  now  applied  in  Mexico  and 

Texas.    It  is  a  square  of  5000  varas  and  equal 

to  4428.4  acres.     (See  appendix.) 

"Boods"  are  no  longer  in  general  use,  but 
they  are  frequently  mentioned  in  old  deeds ;  the 
modern  method  is  rather  to  say  one  fourth  of 
an  acre. 

A  "square  mile"  is  a  unit  of  land  measure 

and  it  is  commonly  called  a  "section."     This 

is  true  only  when  the  section  is  reg- 

A square       ular  in  size  of  640  acres  and  a  sec- 

a  section.       tion  is  not  always  equal  to  a  square 

mile,  as  is  fully  explained  in  a  later 

chapter.     (See  chapter  in.) 

Distance  in  land  measure  is  usually  given  in 
chains  and  links.  A  chain  is  four  rods  or  sixty- 
six  feet  in  length,  divided  into  100  links,  each 
link  being  7.92  inches  long. 

This  chain  now  used  by  surveyors  is  called 

a  "Gunter's"  chain,  from  its  inventor,  Edmund 

Gunter,  an  English  mathematician 

The  and    astronomer    who    lived    about 

chain y°         three  hundred  years  ago.    It  is  very 

convenient  in   practice   since   it   is 


44          LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

graduated  on  the  decimal  scale  and  gives  dis- 
tances in  miles  and  areas  in  acres.  The  old 
style  chain  was  a  chain  in  fact  composed  of  one 
hundred  loops,  or  links,  but  owing  to  wear  at 
the  joints  the  chain  perforce  became  longer  and 
inaccurate ;  the  one  now  used  is  a  steel  tape  with 
the  measurements  in  links  and  feet  marked 
thereon.  Being  one  solid  piece  of  metal  it  does 
not  lengthen  by  wear  nor  kink  in  use. 

In  early  times  the  measurements  were  not  so 
exactly  taken  and  often  distances  were  "step- 
ped off"  which  gave  rise  to  the  term  "pace." 
A  wheel  of  known  diameter  was  sometimes 
used,  frequently  one  wheel  of  the  vehicle  in 
which  the  surveyor  rode.  By  attaching  some 
marker  to  the  rim,  the  revolutions  were  counted 
and  the  distance  calculated.  But  both  of  these 
systems  were  inaccurate  owing  to  "losing 
count"  as  well  as  the  irregularities  in  the  sur- 
face of  the  ground  to  be  measured  and  in  not 
following  a  straight  line. 

The  lines  run  by  the  early  government  sur- 
veyors were  "measured  with  chains  containing 
two  perches  of  sixteen  and  one  half  feet  each, 
subdivided  into  twenty-five  equal  links."  This 
chain  is  yet  employed  in  rugged  country  but  the 
one  more  commonly  used  is  the  Gunter's 
chain,  four  rods  or  sixty-six  feet  in  length,  and 
no  longer  a  chain  in  fact,  but  a  steel  tape  as 
noted  above. 


MEASUREMENTS.  45 

Our  survey  system  in  America  was  early 
developed  by  Thomas  Hutchins,  a  patriot  who 
served  during  the  Revolutionary  War  under 
General  Greene,  who  made  Hutchins  "  Geog- 
rapher General"  of  the  Continental  Army. 

Eufus  Putnam,  a  cousin  of  Israel  Putnam, 

was  also  one  of  the  early  American  surveyors, 

and  he  was  "Surveyor  General"  of 

Origin  of       the  American  colonies  from  1789  to 

in  America.    1803.    He  secured  from  Virginia  a 

grant  of  one  and  a  half  million  acres 

of  land  located  in  southeastern  Ohio  which  he 

surveyed,  and  he  assisted  in  making  the  first 

settlement  in  that  locality. 

But  it  is  to  Thomas  Jefferson,  the  "Sage  of 
Monticello,"  that  properly  belongs  the  honor 
of  our  present  system  of  survey  in  the  United 
States'.  The  manner  of  his  connection  with 
this  honor  will  be  mentioned  in  a  succeeding 
chapter. 

NOTE. — Be  sure  to  learn  the  above  tables  so 
that  you  can  say  them  without  hesitation  or 
mistake.  Master  each  chapter  as  you  proceed 
and  the  knowledge  you  acquire  will  be  worth 
many  dollars  to  you  in  theory  as  well  as  in 
actual  practice,  now  and  in  future  years. 

SUGGESTION. — Visit  the  office  of  your  county 
surveyor  and  examine  the  chain  he  uses  in 
modern  surveying.  He  may  have  an  old  chain 
also  about  his  office  to  show  you. 


CHAPTER  II. 

HISTORY  OP  OUR  SURVEY  SYSTEM. 

The  art  of  surveying  is  supposed  to  have  orig- 
inated with  the  Egyptians,  necessity  of  circum- 
stances demanding  some  method  of  land  meas- 
urement to  re-establish  property  lines  annually 
obliterated  by  the  inundation  of  the 
Origin  of  Nile.  In  early  Rome,  surveying  be- 
longed to  the  liberal  arts  and  was 
entrusted  to  certain  public  officials  who  enjoyed 
special  privileges.  The  public  lands  of  the 
United  States  are  usually  divided  into  rectan- 
gular tracts  bounded  by  straight  lines.  The 
lines  extend  north  and  south  and  east  and 
west,  conforming  to  the  cardinal  points  and  are 
governed  by  a  true  meridian,  which  system  of 
survey  is  truly  American. 

Our  present  system  of  surveying  the  public 
lands  was  first  determined  by  a  committee  ap- 
pointed by  the  Continental  Congress  composed 
of  Thomas  Jefferson,  chairman,  of  Virginia; 
Elbridge  Gerry,  of  Massachusetts ;  David  How- 
ell,  of  Pennsylvania;  Hugh  Williamson,  of 
North  Carolina;  and  Jacob  Read,  of  South  Car- 
olina. 

(46) 


HISTORY  OF  OUR  SURVEY  SYSTEM.          47 

In  May,  1784,  this  committee  reported  "An 

Ordinance  for  Locating  and  Disposing  of  Lands 

in  the  Western  Territory,"  etc.,  which  ordinance 

required  that  the  land  be  first  di- 

Arrangement  vided  into  "hundreds"  or  squares 

Of    the  £  X  'I  J    ^ 

American        oi  ten  miles  square,  and  these  again 


subdivi<le<l  into  "lots"  of  one  mile 
square;  the  "lots"  to  be  numbered 
from  one  to  one  hundred  beginning  at  the  north- 
west corner  and  continuing  from  west  to  east 
and  back  again.  This  ordinance  was  debated 
and  rejected,  and  in  April,  1785,  was  reported 
to  Congress  requiring  that  the  territory  be  di- 
vided into  "townships"  of  seven  miles  square 
by  lines  running  due  north  and  south  and  oth- 
ers extending  due  east  and  west.  These  '  '  town- 
ships" were  to  be  subdivided  into  "sections" 
of  one  mile  square  by  lines  "running  in  the 
same  direction  as  the  external  lines"  and  the 
"sections"  to  be  numbered  in  the  same  man- 
ner as  the  "hundreds"  from  one  to  forty-nine. 

This  is  the  first  record  use  of  the  terms 
"township"  and  "section." 

But  on  May  20,  1785,  the  ordinance  was  fin- 
ally passed  providing  for  townships  six  miles 
square  containing  thirty-six  sections  each  one 
mile  square. 

The  first  public  surveys  were  made  under  this 
ordinance  in  that  part  of  the  Northwest  Terri- 
tory now  embraced  in  Southeastern  Ohio. 


48 


LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 


3t, 

3o 

2* 

/e 

/e 

6 

3f 

29 

23 

/7 

// 

s- 

3+ 

2B 

22 

Sf, 

/o 

* 

33 

27 

2/ 

IS 

9 

3 

32 

26 

20 

/* 

a 

2 

J/ 

2S 

19 

'3 

7 

/ 

Fig.  I. 


survey  in 
the  United 
states  and 


The  townships 
were  laid  out  in 
tiers  or  ranges 
northward  from  the 
Ohio  River  and  are 
usually  styled  the 
1  *  s  e  v  e  n  ranges. ' ' 
The  sections  were 
numbered  from  one 
to  thirty-six  begin- 
ning in  the  south- 
east corner  and  ex- 

rectanguiar    tending  from  south  to  north  in  each 
tier   with    thirty-six    in    the    north- 
west corner  as  shown  on  the  accom- 
diagram. 

In  May,  1796, 
Congress  approved 
an  act  providing 
that  the  sections  in 
the  township  should 
be  numbered  from 
one  to  thirty- six  be- 
ginning in  the  north- 
east corner  and  ex- 
tending from  east  to 
west  and  back  again 
with  number  thirty- 
six  in  the  southeast  corner  as  illustrated  by  the 
annexed  diagram. 


6 

s 

+ 

3 

2 

/ 

7 

8 

9 

IO 

// 

/2 

/& 

/7 

/4 

/S 

/* 

/J 

19 

20 

2/ 

22 

23 

24- 

3o 

2? 

26 

27 

2(> 

2-r 

3l 

32 

33 

34 

3S- 

3b 

HISTORY  OF  OUR  SURVEY  SYSTEM.          49 

Various   changes  were  made  from  time  to 
time  until  in  1805,  when  through  the  further 
influence  of  Jefferson  the  present  complete  sys- 
tem was  fully  adopted  by  Congress. 

The  present   It  provides  for  prime  meridians  at 

system 

adopted.  suitable  distances  apart,  for  base 
lines  intersecting  these  at  right  an- 
gles, townships  six  miles  square,  subdivided 
into  thirty-six  sections  one  mile  square,  num- 
bered from  the  northeast  corner,  east  to  west 
and  west  to  east,  as  shown  above.1 

The  first  surveys  were  made  under  the  direc- 
tion of  the  "Geographer  of  the  United  States," 
but  the  last  mentioned  ordinance  of  1796  pro- 
vided for  the  appointment  of  a  surveyor  gen- 
eral. By  act  of  Congress  in  April,  1812,  the 
" General  Land  Office"  was  established  as  a 
Department  of  the  Treasury  and  its  chief  officer 
was  designated  "Commissioner  of  the  General 
Land  Office."  This  office  under  its  commis- 
sioner has  ever  since  had  charge  of  the  survey 
of  the  public  domain,  and  in  March,  1849,  it 
was  transferred  to  the  Department  of  the  In- 
terior, where  it  now  remains. 

The  metric  and  Spanish  system  of  land  meas- 
urement is  used  in  the  districts  where  the  early 

1.  In  the  survey  of  lands  in  Western  Canada  the  sec- 
tions of  the  township  begin  with  number  1  in  the  south- 
east corner  as  in  figure  I  and  number  across,  west  and 
east  with  36  in  the  northeast  corner;  a  sort  of  combina- 
tion of  the  American  system  as  shown  by  figures  I  and  II. 
4 


50          LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

titles  originated  through  Spanish  grants,  nota- 
bly in  California  and  Texas.  In  the  latter  state 
the  rectangular  system  of  survey 
The  metric  based  on  some  prime  meridian,  has 
flndem  °f  never  been  established,  but  the  state 
measurement  is  subdivided  by  many  private  sur- 
veys, mostly  divisions  of  railroad 
grants.  These  are  divided  into  squares  of  from 
forty  to  160  acres  and  often  into  sections  of  640 
acres  each  and  numbered  from  one  to  the  total 
number  included  in  any  special  named  survey. 
Nor  do  the  section  lines  conform  to  the  cardi- 
nal points  but  extend  in  any  direction,  though 
in  straight  lines,  as  first  surveyed  in  subdivid- 
ing the  larger  tract  or  original  grants,  more  fre- 
quently referred  to  as  some  special  named 
"Rancho." 

The  complete  table  of  the  metric  system  of 
land  measure  is  given  in  a  succeeding  chapter. 
(See  Index.) 

NOTE. — The  township,  section,  and  fractional 
section,  with  their  survey  and  subdivisions, 
will  be  treated  more  explicitly  in  the  following 
pages. 

SUGGESTION:  Visit  some  real  estate  office 
and  ask  how  sections  are  numbered  and  how 
they  are  arranged  in  townships  and  ranges. 


CHAPTER  HI. 

MERIDIANS  AND  BASE  LINES. 

As  noted  in  the  previous  chapter,  the  survey 
of  the  publio  domain  is  under  the  direction  of 
the  United  States  Government,  and  in  direct 
charge  of  the  Department  of  the  Interior,  the 
Secretary  of  which  department  is 
commissioner  a  member  of  the  President's  Cab- 
General  inet.  Acting  under  this  Depart- 
Land  office.  ment  is  the  * '  Commissioner  of  the 
General  Land  Office"  who  has 
charge  of  this  division  of  the  Department  of 
the  Interior. 

Whenever  a  district  needs  be  made  ready  for 
settlement  or  private  ownership,  the  Govern- 
ment of  the  United  States  through  proper  offi- 
cers arranges  for  a  survey  of  the  land  to  be 
made.1  Competent  surveyors  are  employed  to 

1.  The  regulations  of  our  government  land  office  pro- 
vide that  "In  all  cases  where  the  establishment  of  a  new 

principal  meridian  seems  to  be  necessary 
Establishment  ^°  *^e  Surveyor  General,  he  shall  sub- 
ofnew  prime  mit  the  matter,  together  with  his  rea- 
meridians.  sons  therefor,  to  the  Commissioner  of  the 

General  Land  Office,  and  the  survey  of 
such  principal  meridian  shall  not  be  commenced  until 
written  authority,  together  with  such  special  instructions 
as  he  may  deem  necessary  shall  have  been  received  from 
the  Commissioner." 

(51) 


52          LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

establish  the  meridians  and  base  lines,  and  to 
survey  the  territory  under  consideration  into 
the  several  townships  and  sections,  the  squares 
or  divisions  suitable  for  easy  description. 

To   begin   a   survey  it  is  necessary  to  have 

some  substantial  point  from  where  a  start  may 

be  made,  and  this  point  of  beginning 

Location  of  should  be  one  that  may  not  be  read- 
the  prime  -i  i  o  -i, 

meridians,  ily  moved  or  easily  lost.  Such  a 
place  is  usually  selected  as  can  be 
readily  referred  to,  frequently  the  mouth  of  a 
river  is  chosen,  and  from  such  selected  point 
a  line  is  run  due  north  or  south  as  conditions 
may  require,  to  the  margin  of  the  district  to  be 
surveyed,  or  to  the  boundary  of  the  state  or 
territory  in  which  the  district  is  located. 

This  first  north  and  south  line  is  called  a 
prime  or  principal  meridian.  And  the  FIRST 
PRINCIPAL  MERIDIAN  is  the  line  drawn 
North  from  the  mouth  of  the  Great  Miama  River 
in  Ohio,  and  this  line  is  on  the  meridian  forming 
the  boundary  line  between  the  states  of  Ohio 
and  Indiana.  It  is  the  first  one  of  the  several 
prime  meridians  that  have  been  established  in 
the  United  States,  in  the  extension  of  the  rec- 
tangular system  of  land  survey. 

The  first  sections  surveyed  in  Eastern  Ohio 
were  referred  to  the  Meridian  forming  the 
boundary  line  between  Ohio  and  Pennsylvania, 
and  known  as  "Ellicott's  Line."  During  the 


MERIDIANS  AND  BASE  LINES.  53 

one  hundred  twenty-seven  years  since  the  or- 
ganization of  this  system  of  rectangular  sur- 
veying some  twenty-four  (24)  different  num- 
bered or  named  principal  meridians,  with  their 
base  lines,  have  been  established  throughout 
the  United  States.  These  are  shown  with  their 
location  on  the  United  States  map  in  the  next 
chapter.  The  exact  location  of  each  prime 
meridian,  together  with  the  more  exact  terri- 
tory governed  by  it  is  given  in  the  addenda  to 
this  volume,  to  which  reference  may  he  had. 

However,  we  note  in  passing  that  the  "sec- 
ond prime  meridian"  is  drawn  north  from  the 
mouth  of  Little  Blue  Creek  in  Indiana  and  ex- 
tends northward  to  the  southern  boundary  line 
of  Michigan.  The  third  principal  meridian 
extends  northward  from  the  mouth  of  the  Ohio 
River  through  Illinois.  The  fourth  prime 
meridian  is  that  meridian  passing  through  the 
mouth  of  the  Illinois  River,  but  beginning  for 
reference,  where  it  last  touches  the  west  bank 
of  that  river.  So  as  we  progress  westward 
across  the  country  we  find  other  principal 
meridians  to  which  the  land  surveys  are  refer- 
red for  location. 

On  either  side  and  parallel  to  each  princi- 
Guide  pal  meridian,  "guide  meridians"  are 
SiTS  established  at  regular  intervals  of 
lines.  twenty-four  miles  apart. 

Coincident  with  the  establishing  of  a  prime 
meridian,  and  the  necessary  guide  meridians 


54          LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

throughout  any  district  to  be  surveyed,  cross 
lines  are  run  at  right  angles  to  the  principal 
meridian.  The  first  of  these  cross  lines,  estab- 
lished from  some  prominent  point,  is  the  "Base 
line"  for  that  principal  meridian,  and  the  other 
cross  lines  established  at  intervals  of  twenty- 
four  miles  north  and  south  of  the  base  line  are 
called  "standard  parallels"  or  "correction 
lines.  ' ' 

These  lines  cut  the  district  surveyed  into 
tracts  as  near  as  may  be  twenty-four  miles 
square,  and  these  are  further  divided  into  parts 
six  miles  on  each  side.  These  last  divisions  are 
called  "townships"  and  are  more  particularly 
treated  in  a  succeeding  chapter. 

By  the  above  method  the  district  surveyed  is 
now  marked  out  into  squares  six  miles  each 
way,  and  they  extend  east  and  west  from  the 
principal  meridian  and  north  and  south  from 
the  base  line.  (See  diagram  below.) 

The  rows  of  squares,  or  townships,  extend- 
ing side  by  side,  along  with  the  base  line  are 
called  "tiers;"  and  the  first  one 

Ranges,  above  the  base  line  is  tier  number 
tiers  and  . 

townships,     one    north,    the    second  one  is  tier 

number  two,  etc.,  while  those  south 
of  the  base  line  are  numbered  the  same  way 
south.  The  diagram  herein  shown  illustrates 
ranges  and  tiers,  and  their  location. 


MERIDIANS  AND  BASE  LINES. 


55 


Fig.  III. 

A  is  in  tier  number  three  north  of  base  line 
and  range  number  two  east  of  the  principal 
meridian,  and  the  location  of  this  square  or 
township  is  given  as  tier  three  north,  range  two 
east  of  the  principal  meridian.  Always  state 
the  meridian  to  which  you  refer. 

B  is  tier  2  north,  range  4,  east  of  the  princi- 
pal meridian. 

C  is  tier  2  south,  range  2,  west  of  the  princi- 
pal meridian. 

D  is  tier  3  north,  range  2,  west  of  the  princi- 
pal meridian. 

E  is  tier  3  south,  range  8,  east  of  the  princi- 
pal meridian. 

F  is  tier  7  north,  range  3,  west  of  the  princi- 
pal meridian. 


56          LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

G  is  tier  6  north,  range  6,  east  of  the  princi- 
pal meridian. 

Standard  parallels  are  also  used  as  corre'c- 
tion  lines  which  is  more  thoroughly  explained 
in  the  next  chapter  on  the  township.  Guide 
meridians  are  employed  to  assist  in  keeping  the 
survey  in  conformity  to  the  direction  of  the 
true  meridian  but  ranges  are  never  numbered 
east  and  west  from  them,  they  numbering  only 
from  a  principal  meridian. 

Thus  it  will  be  understood  that  when  a  rec- 
tangular survey  is  established  the  location  of 
any  township  therein  is  readily  given  by  count- 
ing the  rows  north  or  south  from  the  Base  line 
and  east  or  west  from  the  prime  meridian. 
Tiers  *  are  given  first  and  range  numbers  last 
in  describing  a  tract  of  land. 

As  prime  meridians  are  established  in  new 
districts  and  surveys  extended  each  way  from 
them,  it  must  needs  follow  that  these  later  sur- 
veys or  ranges  will  meet  surveys  or  ranges  ex- 
tended westward  from  a  former  survey  refer- 

1.  The  term  "township"  is  more  commonly  used  in 
place  of  "tier"  to  designate  the  rows  of  squares  extend- 
ing east  and  west  parallel  with  a  base  line,  though  "tier" 
is  the  word  employed  in  the  Manual  of  Surveying  issued 
by  the  general  land  office.  If  the  more  common  term 
"township"  is  used,  it  must  not  he  confused  with  the 
single  square  or  unit  of  land  measure,  containing  thirty- 
six  sections,  which  is  discussed  in  a  later  chapter. 


MERIDIANS  AND  BASE  LINES.  57 

red  to  some  certain  prime  meridian 
Conditions 

where  two     established  at  a  previous  date.  Where 
these  surveys  meet  it  does  not  often 


different       happen  that  the  last  strip  is  exactly 

prime  r  r 

meridians      six  miles  wide  and  the  last  range  may 

often  be  very  narrow. 

This  condition  is  well  illustrated  by  range 
eleven  east  of  the  third  principal  meridian,  ex- 
tending through  the  eastern  district  of  Illi- 
nois. (See  the  map  of  Illinois,  figure  V.)  This 
range  is  less  than  one  mile  wide  in  many  places, 
and  its  subdivision  will  be  explained  in  a  later 
chapter  on  the  township. 

SUGGESTION.  —  Study  some  map  (figure  VII) 
showing  the  territorial  growth  of  the  United 
States  and  how  it  has  increased  in  area, 


Pig.  IV. 

Map  of  the  United  States  Showing  the  Location  of  the 
Several  Prime  Meridians  and  their   Base  Lines. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

RECTANGULAR  SURVEY  SYSTEM,  ILLUSTRATED. 

On  the  opposite  page  is  shown  a  map  of  the 
United    States,     with    the    several 

Our  prime  •  . -,.  -.  -,  ,. 

meridians,  prune  meridians  and  base  lines,  es- 
tablished in  the  survey  of  the  public 
domain  of  the  United  States. 

In  chapter  three  the  location  of  the  first  four 
prime  meridians  to  be  established  was  noted; 
by  reference  to  the  map  here  given  it  can  be 
seen  at  a  glance  how  the  country  is  divided  and 
description  of  lands  given  in  reference  to  some 
one  prime  meridian  and  its  base  line. 

It  may  also  be  noticed  that  all  states  of  the 
United  States  lying  north  of  the  Ohio  River 
and  west  of  the  Mississippi  are  surveyed  by 
this  rectangular  system,  except  Texas  alone. 
This  state  was  orignally  divided  in- 
.  to  immense  ranches  by  the  Spanish 
method  and  measured  by  the  metric 
system,  into  irregular  shaped  bodies.  In  re- 
cent years  these  ranches  are  frequently  resur- 
veyed  into  squares  as  noted  on  page  50. 

No  state  south  of  the  Ohio  River  and  east  of 
the  Mississippi  except  Mississippi,  Alabama, 
and  Florida,  is  surveyed  by  this  rectangular 

(59) 


60          LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 


Fig.  V. 


RECTANGULAR  SURVEY  SYSTEM  ILLUSTRATED.  61 

method.  In  these  Atlantic  and  eastern  states, 
all  land  descriptions  are  given  by  beginning  at 
some  point  in  the  margin  and  bounding  the 
plantation  entirely  by  giving  the  angles  and 
measurements  of  the  entire  boundary  lines.  This 
method  is  known  as  description  by  "  metes  and 
bounds,"  examples  of  which  are  given  later  in 
this  volume. 

By  further  reference  to  the  United  States 
map  it  will  be  noticed  that  but  the 
sectional16  ^rs*  s^  °^  *he  prime  meridians  are 
survey  numbered,  while  the  others  are 
employed!  named  from  some  notable  point  near 
which  they  pass.  It  may  also  be 
mentioned  that  the  survey  of  Minnesota,  the 
Dakotas,  Montana  and  Wyoming  refer  to  the 
fourth  principal  meridian  and  ranges  number 
west  from  it  until  the  survey  east  from  the  He- 
lena meridian  is  reached;  and  the  fortieth  par- 
allel is  the  base  line  for  the  survey  of  the  above 
named  states,  so  that  both  range  and  tier  (or 
township)  numbers  extend  into  the  hundreds. 

For  more  complete  information  as  to  what 
districts  the  various  meridians  control,  the 
reader  is  again  referred  to  the  addenda  in  the 
back  pages  of  this  volume. 

In  the  map  of  the  state  of  Illinois  herein 
given  is  shown  the  complete  government  sur- 
vey dividing  the  state  into  the  several  town- 


62          LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

ships.  The  squares  are  commonly 
of  aUstaTe.  known  as  ' ' congressional  town- 
ships" but  for  local  government 
purposes  are  called  " towns"  or  " school  town- 
ships." When  full  size  they  measure  six  miles 
on  each  side  and  contain  thirty-six  sections  of 
six  hundred  forty  acres  each,  a  total  of  23,040 
acres,  but  owing  to  the  curvature  of  the  earth's 
surface  and  irregularities  in  surveying  they 
more  generally  have  more  or  less  than  this  ex- 
act theoretical  number. 

The  term  "town"  here  mentioned  must  be 
distinguished  from  that  settlement  known  as  a 
village  or  city.  This  seeming  confusion  of 
terms  must  be  understood,  and  for  clearness  it 
is  well  to  call  the  settlement  a  "village,"  the 
square  of  thirty-six  sections  a  "town,"  the  tier 
of  horizontal  squares  a  "township,"  and  the 
vertical  row  of  towns  a  "range." 

It  must  also  be  understood  that  for  local 

government  purposes  a  county  division  is  called 

a  "township"  but  this  portion  of 

Township  as      a  county  has  no  reference  to  a  sur- 

diBtinguished  ,        ,  m,  . 

from  a  town,  vey  or  local  measurement.  This 
township  may  and  often  does  con- 
form to  a  congressional  township  in  size  but  it 
is  named  instead  of  being  numbered  and  '  *  Haw- 
creek  Township"  or  any  other  so  named  sec- 
tion of  a  county  is  in  no  wise  a  unit  of  meas- 
ure, but  merely  a  political  division  of  a  county. 


EECTANGULAE  SURVEY  SYSTEM  ILLUSTRATED.  63 

Study  well  the  map  of  Illinois  in  this  chapter, 

and  practice  locating  any  square  or  town  as  so 

many     "townships"      north      or 

A  township  as     south  of  the  base  line  and  so  many 

distinguished  * 

from  a  tier.       ranges  east  or  west  of  the  third 

or  fourth  principal  meridian.  The 
location  of  your  own  town  wherein  you  live  is 
given  the  same  way  as  so  many  " tiers*'  or 
townships  north  or  south,  as  the  case  may  be, 
of  the  base  line  and  so  many  ranges  east  or 
west  of  the  meridian  governing  the  tract  sur- 
veyed, in  which  you  live. 

Notice  also  that  an  irregular  tract  on  the 
eastern  side  of  Illinois  does  not  conform  to  the 
other  survey.  This  line  marks  the  boundary  of 
an  early  private  survey  known  as  Har- 
surveyL  rison  Purchase,  established  before  the 
general  survey  and  whenever  such  pri- 
vate or  military  surveys  are  encountered  they 
remain  and  are  surveyed  if  at  all  by  a  private 
resurvey.  It  happens  generally  that  on  these 
lines  there  are  jog  and  slip  corners  because  the 
two  surveys  on  either  side  of  the  line  are  in- 
dependent of  each  other. 

Whenever  a  district  is  surveyed  it  is  neces- 
sary to  mark  the  " corners"  and  the  nature  of 
the  surface  at  a  corner  determines  the  method, 
but  in  any  event  the  perpetuation  of  the  corner 
is  most  to  be  considered. 


64          LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

Memorials  buried  more  than   twelve   inches 
beneath  the  surface  at   a   corner, 

Markers  and  -,  -, 

memorials.  sucn  as  glass,  stone  ware,  pots- 
herds, marked  stones,  cast  iron, 
charcoal  and  charred  stakes  are  most  recom- 
mended. But  it  often  happens  that  this  cannot 
be  done. 

If  the  corner  occurs  on  a  rock  ledge,  a  cross 
is  cut  at  the  exact  corner  and  a  witness  mound 
of  rocks  may  be  constructed  nearby. 

On  a  prairie,  removed  from  opportunity  of 
more  permanent  monuments,  surveyors  often 
dig  rectangular  pits  and  raise  a  cone  shaped 
mound  as  a  witness  to  the  wooden  stake  driven 
at  the  exact  corner.  The  illustration  shows 
this  method  and  it  also  shows  a  jog  corner  or 
where  a  "correction"  survey  is  made. 


Pig.  VI. 


BECTAXGULAR  SURVEY  SYSTEM  ILLUSTRATED.  65 

This  jog  corner  exists  where  fractional  sec- 
tions occur,  as  will  be  explained  in  the  next 
chapter.  In  a  timbered  district  the  trees  at  or 
near  a  corner  are  "blazed"  while  an  iron  stake 
is  driven  at  the  exact  corner,  and  a  tree  should 
be  so  marked  near  to  the  ground  that  if  any 
one  ignorant  or  careless  of  the  penalty  of  the 
law,  should  cut  it  down,  that  the  stump  will  re- 
tain the  evidence  of  its  importance. 

An  act  of  Congress  approved  June  10,  1896, 
provides  that  it  shall  be  unlawful  for  any  per- 
son to  destroy,  deface,  change  or 
Penalty  for  remove  to  another  place,  any  sec- 
deSg°orf  tion  coraer>  etc.,  on  any  govern- 
monuments.  ment  line  of  survey,  or  to  cut  down 
any  witness  tree  or  any  tree  blazed 
to  mark  a  line  of  survey,  or  to  remove  any 
monument  or  mark  or  survey.  Any  offender 
under  this  act,  on  conviction  shall  be  fined  not 
exceeding  two  hundred  fifty  dollars,  or  be  im- 
prisoned not  more  than  one  hundred  days. 
(29  Stat,  L.  243.) 

SUGGESTION. — Visit  the  office  of  your  ab- 
stracter  and  ask  to  see  his  map  of  the  United 
States,  published  by  the  general  land  office. 
This  map  shows  every  meridian,  base  line  and 
township  that  has  been  surveyed  in  the  differ- 
ent states  and  territories. 


66 


LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 


Fig.  VII. 

Figure  VII  illustrates  the  original  territory  claimed  by 
the  several  states  at  the  time  of  adopting  our  Constitution 
and  the  growth  of  territory  by  the  several  accessions.  (See 
page  173. 


CHAPTEB  V. 

THE  TOWNSHIPS  AND  SECTIONS. 

The  township  is  a  unit  of  land  measure  com- 
posed of  thirty-six  sections  and  as  noted  in  the 
last  chapter,  when  it  is  regular  in  size  it  con- 
tains 23,040  acres.  Each  regular  township  is 
divided  into  thirty-six  squares  or  sections  and 
they  are  numbered  from  one  to  thirty-six,  as 
shown  in  figure  II  on  page  48. 

But  the  rectangular  system  of  survey  pro- 
duces square  results  in  theory  only,  because 
two  north  and  south  meridians  get  nearer  to- 
gether as  they  approach  the  pole.  This  is 
caused  by  the  curvature  of  the  earth  and  it  af- 
fects the  measurements  of  each  township  to  the 
extent  that  its  north  line  is  about  three  rods 
shorter  than  the  south  line  six  miles  below. 

Also  owing  to  inaccuracy  in  surveying x  the 
east  and  west  lines  bounding  the 
irregularity  towns  and  sections  on  the  north  and 
andUhowing  south,  often  do  not  run  exactly  par- 
equalized,  allel,  six  miles  apart.  This  conver- 
gence and  irregularity  produces  a 

1.      Variation  of  the   Needle. 

The  compass,  because  of  its  convenience,  has  for  years  been  the 
principal  instrument  used  in  land  survey,  but  it  has  lately  been  super- 
seded by  other  instruments  where  exactness  is  required.  Compass 
surveying  is  based  on  the  tendency  of  the  needle  to  adjust  itself  to  the 
magnetic  meridian,  or  to  "point  to  the  north."  Yet  it  is  constantly 
changing  its  direction. 

That  irregular  line  extending  generally  north  and  south,  which 
marks  the  place  of  no  variation  is  called  the  agonic  line,  and  this  line 
seems  to  have  a  periodical  movement  back  and  forth,  east  and  west. 
In  the  United  States  the  movement  has  been  constantly  toward  the 
east  until  about  1900  when  it  began  a  westward  direction. 

The  needle  will  also  vary  daily  from  five  minutes  to  twenty  min- 
utes. In  the  northern  hemisphere  the  north  end  of  the  needle  moves 
westward  until  about  1  p.  m.  when  it  begins  the  return  motion.  The 
movement  is  less  noticeable  on  cloudy  days  and  also  less  in  the  winter 
months. 

The  needle  is  also  subject  to  sudden  changes,  due  perhaps  to  elec- 
tric disturbances,  some  time  coincident  with  a  thunder  storm,  at  others 
without  any  apparent  cause.  Ve_ins  of  ore  or  metal  in  the  immediate 
vicinity  of  the  needle  will  affect  it,  and  the  deflection  is  not  the  same 
in  different  instruments. 

Where  survey  lines  are  run  with  the  compass  the  date  of  the  sur- 
vey should  be  given  and  the  allowance  of  the  variation  of  the  needle 
should  be  stated.  By  taking  a  back  sight  the  work  may  be  made  to 
test  the  accuracy  but  the  needle  (magnetic  meridian)  should  be  tested 
frequently  with  the  true  meridian. 

(Consult  any  good  work  on  surveying  for  an  explanation  of  this 
method.) 

(67) 


68          LAND  SUBVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

township  of  more  or  less  than  exactly  23,040 
acres  or  thirty-six  sections  of  640  acres  each. 

To  take  care  of  this  variable  quantity  it  has 
been  provided  that  all  of  the  surplus  or  any 
deficit  shall  be  referred  to  the  north  and  west 
rows  of  sections  in  each  township  and  to  the 
outer  half  of  all  such  sections. 

Thus  in  sections  one,  two,  three,  four,  five, 
and  six,  the  north  half  may  contain  more  or 
less  than  320  acres,  and  so  with  the  west  half 
of  sections  six,  seven,  eighteen,  nineteen,  thirty 
and  thirty-one.  (See  figure  II  for  location.) 

All  other  sections  of  a  township,  except  the 
eleven  above  named  are  supposed  to  be  exact 
and  contain  but  640  acres,  160  in  each  quarter, 
though  occasionally  by  some  error  this  is  not 
the  case.  All  such  sections  as  are  long  or  short 
in  measurement  of  640  acres  each,  are  called 
"fractional  sections,"  and  they  are  subdivided 
into  parts,  different  from  a  regular  section,  as 
explained  in  the  next  chapter. 

This  variance  in  size   of   the    sections    also 

gives  use  to  jog  and  slip  corners. 

?dgPcorners.    Where  a  narrow  section   joins    one 

of  the  regular  or  large  size  sections, 

the  corners  of  both  may  not  coincide  but  the 

corner  of  one  may  be  at  some  distance  from  the 

other,  often  a  rod  or  more  removed.      (See 

figure  VI.) 

Again,  to  equalize  the  convergence  of  the 
range  lines,  bounding  a  township  on  the  east 
and  west,  a  secondary  base  line  is  established 


THE  TOWNSHIP  AND  SECTIONS. 


69 


as  mentioned  in  a  former  chapter  under  the 
term  " standard  parallel"  or  " correction  line." 
On  the  south  side  of  this  line,  the  range  lines 
extending  northward  are  terminated  and  a  new 
set  of  range  lines  are  initiated  from  the  north 
side  of  it,  again,  equally  six  miles  apart,  the 
same  as  originally  begun  from  the  base  line. 


In  figure  eight  above,  this  correction  of  the 
convergence  is  illustrated.  The  range  lines  be- 
low the  " correction  line"  have  been  approach- 
ing the  prime  meridian  throughout  their  length 


70          LAND  SUBVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

from  where  they  started  either  at  the  base  line 
or  at  the  last  correction  line  below.  Here  at 
the  correction  line  shown  they  are  terminated 
on  the  south  side  and  a  new  set  begun,  meas- 
ured again  from  the  prime  meridian,  eastward 
and  westward  on  the  north  side  once  more 
evenly  six  miles  apart.  The  jog  corners  will 
frequently  occur  at  section  corners  also,  not  on 
township  lines,  but  the  distance  is  not  usually 
so  extensive  as  at  a  township  corner. 

It  also  happens  that  where  ranges  meet,  the 
cross  lines  do  not  always  coincide  and  the  north- 
west corner  of  the  section  on  the  east  side  of 
the  range  line  may  be  north  or  south  of  the 
northeast  corner  of  the  section  adjoining  on 
the  west.  This  jog  is  usually  referred  to  as  a 
"slip"  corner  as  distinguished  from  the  "jog" 
corner  above  described. 

The  term  township  as  above  used  in  this  chap- 
ter refers  only  to  a  unit  of  land 
The  narrow  measure,  six  miles  square,  as  nearly 
whlf  and  as  may  ke.  Or  when  a  survey  west 
causes  it.  from  one  meridian  meets  the  survey 
east  from  another  it  may  be  much 
narrower.  (Refer  again  to  the  map  of  Illinois, 
figure  V.)  When  it  is  thus  narrow  it  does  not 
contain  the  full  number  of  thirty-six  sections 
but  such  only  as  the  width  of  the  township  will 
allow,  and  they  are  numbered  from  the  side  on 
which  the  meridian  governing  the  survey  is  lo- 


THE  TOWNSHIP  AND  SECTIONS. 


71 


cated  leaving  any  deficiency  or  omitted  num- 
bers to  fall  on  the  opposite  side. 


Fig.  IX 


/8 


30 


Fig.  X. 


Figure  nine  shows  a  township  too  narrow  for 
complete  size  and  the  sections  have  the  east  set 
of  numbers  because  this  is  reckoned  in  some 
range  counted  west  from  a  prime  meridian, 
while  figure  ten  is  wide  enough  only  for  one  tier 
of  sections  and  they  are  numbered  as  the  west 
row  in  a  township,  because  this  township  is 
reckoned  in  a  range  numbered  east  from  a 
prime  meridian. 

In  the  narrow  range  observed  in  figure  five 
it  is  numbered  range  eleven  eastward  from  the 
third  prime  meridian  and  has  the  west  section 
numbers  as  in  figure  ten  above. 


72          LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

School  townships  conform  in  size  to  these 
congressional  townships  irrespect- 
The  school  ive  of  their  completeness,  and 
i°^?owin  though  a  township  has  but  six  sec- 
range,  tions  it  is  a  complete  school  town- 
ship also  and  receives  its  distinct 
apportionment  of  the  public  school  fund  and 
has  its  full  list  of  school  officers. 

The  political  township  as  heretofore  men- 
tioned is  not  necessarily  confined  by  any  reg- 
ular land  measurements  but  is  some  part  of  a 
county  set  apart  by  the  inhabitants  thereof  for 
the  purpose  of  local  government.  In  many  lo- 
calities it  does  but  it  may  or  may  not  conform 
in  size  and  location  to  the  congressional  town- 
ship and  frequently  it  is  composed 

Political  of  parts  of  several  school  town- 

townships  u-          rm.     v        j  f  n- 

distinguished,  snips.  The  boundary  or  a  politi- 
cal township  of  a  county  never  ex- 
tends beyond  a  county  line,  while  a  school 
township  (otherwise  called  a  congressional 
township)  often  lies  in  two  or  more  counties. 

The  political  townships  are  the  ones  that  are 
named  and  correspond  in  their  local  democratic 
government  to  the  New  England  "town,"  and 
are  often  so  called  in  the  states  west  of  the 
Allegheny  Mountains. 

SUGGESTION. — Visit  the  office  of  your  ab- 
stracter  and  ask  him  about  the  townships  and 
jog  corners  in  your  county.  Get  him  to  tell  you 
about  any  correction  line  or  fractional  town- 
ship in  the  neighborhood. 


CHAPTER  VI. 


THE  SECTION  AND  ITS  PARTS. 


-ft 


I      1 

k 

6 

J 

L 

M 
If 

Fig.  XI. 


Fig.  XII. 


The  above  diagram  represents  a  regular  sec- 
tion of  the  size  one  mile  square,  containing  sis 
hundred  forty  acres,  and  divided  into  several 
of  its  regular  fractional  parts. 

It  is  easily  understood  that  it  contains  two 

halves,  four  quarters,  etc.,  but  the  parts  will  be 

described   according  to   their  loca- 

The section     ,.  •.-,  •      ,••  ,  •  -,   •          i 

divided.         tion  within  the  section  and  in  rela- 
tion to  the  lines  crossing  the  section. 
It  will  also  be  understood  that  the  section  num- 
ber is  placed  in  the  center  of  the  plat  and  that 

(73) 


74          LAND  SUBVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

the  above  diagrams  do  not  represent  sections 
in  the  north  or  west  rows  of  the  township. 

To  illustrate  the  method  of  describing  the 
regular  fractional  parts  of  the  section  study 
the  above  diagram  and  note  the  following: 

A  is  read  as  the  north  half  of  section  fifteen 
(N.  1/2)  and  contains  320  acres. 

B  is  the  southwest  quarter  of  section  fifteen 
(S.  W.  i/4)  and  contains  160  acres. 

C  is  the  north  half  of  the  southeast  quarter 
(N.i/^-SE^)  and  contains  eighty  acres. 

D  is  the  southwest  quarter  of  the  southeast 
quarter  (abbreviated  description  SW-SE)  and 
contains  forty  acres. 

E  is  the  south  half  of  the  southeast  quarter 
of  the  southeast  quarter  of  section  fifteen  (S1/^ 
SE-SE-15)  and  contains  twenty  acres. 

F  is  the  northwest  quarter  of  the  southeast 
quarter  of  the  southeast  quarter  (brief  descrip- 
tion is  NW-SE-SE-15)  and  contains  ten  acres. 

G  is  the  west  half  of  the  northeast  quarter  of 
the  southeast  quarter  of  the  southeast  quarter 
of  section  fifteen  and  contains  five  acres  (W.1/^ 
NE-SE-SE). 

H  is  the  southeast  quarter  of  the  northeast 
quarter  of  the  southeast  quarter  of  the  south- 
east quarter  of  section  fifteen,  and  contains 
two  and  one-half  acres.  (SE-NE-SE-SE-15). 

I  is  the  west  half  of  section  thirty-six  and 
contains  320  acres.  (W.y2-36). 


THE  SECTION  AND  ITS  PARTS.  75 

J  is  the  east  half  of  the  east  half  of  section 
thirty-six  and  contains  160  acres.  (E^-E^- 
36). 

K  is  the  west  half  of  the  northeast  quarter  of 
section  thirty-six  and  contains  eighty  acres 
(W1/2-NE-36). 

L  is  the  west  half  of  the  west  half  of  the 
southeast  quarter  of  section  thirty-six  and 
contains  forty  acres.  (Wy2-Wy2-SE-36). 

M  is  the  east  half  of  the  northwest  quarter 
of  the  southeast  quarter  of  section  thirty-six 
and  contains  twenty  acres.  (Ey2-NW-SE-36). 

N.  The  reader  will  supply.  (Ey2-SW-SE- 
36). 

So  any  fractional  part  of  a  regular  section 
may  be  described  by  straight  lines  crossing  it 
parallel  to  either  side.  The  reader  should  prac- 
tice dividing  a  section  into  parts  and  in  giving 
the  correct  description  and  acreage  of  each 
part,  and  unless  one  is  familiar  with  this  sub- 
ject he  should  at  this  time  become  a  student 
until  it  is  mastered. 

The  above  illustrations  in  describing  the 
parts  of  a  section  include  the  regular  size  sec- 
tions only  and  do  not  always  apply  to 
irregular  the  sections  in  the  north  and  west  tiers 
anyhow  °^  a  township.  As  mentioned  in  a  pre- 
divided.  vious  chapter  these  eleven  sections  are 
usually  "fractional"  and  they  are  di- 
vided into  the  equal  fractional  parts  as  much 


76 


LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 


as  possible  and  the  remaining  parts  are  divided 
into  "lots"  and  numbered  consecutively  as 
shown  in  the  next  accompanying  cuts. 


Loi-    Z 

to/-  ^ 

79.3/ 

"•77 

Loi-  1 

io-f-  / 

80 

QO 

'(,0 

/60 

L»f-  3 

*.••*•  Z 

7/.S-6 

BUS" 

Le+  / 

Lai-  / 

QO 

QO 

Lo+2 

Latl 

7I.3L 

90 

/to 

is+t 

Lo+l' 

7J.fa 

80 

/60 

Let-2 
73.36 

96 

'<* 

Fig.  XIII. 


Fig.  XIV. 


Fig.  XV. 


When  the  corners  of  a  section  have  been  es- 
tablished its  area  is  determined  and  the  subdi- 
vision of  the  fractional  sections  into  the  sev- 
eral "lots"  is  performed  in  the  drafting  office 
of  the  surveyor  general  and  not  determined 
and  so  surveyed  by  the  original  surveyor  on 
the  ground.  By  direction  of  the  Act  of  Con- 
gress approved  February  11,  1805,  the  division 
of  the  fractional  sections  on  the  north  and  west 
tiers  of  a  township  was  accomplished  by  con- 
structing "lot  one  of  eighty  acres"  next  to  the 
center  line  of  the  section  and  placing  the  sur- 
plus or  deficiency  into  "lot  two"  and  consider- 
ing it  as  the  remaining  "half"  of  the  quarter. 

Thus  it  will  be  seen  by  referring  again  to 
figure  XIII  and  figure  XIV  that  if  the  sections 
on  the  north  line  of  the  township  were  * '  short, ' ' 


THE  SECTION  AND  ITS  PABTS. 


77 


the  shortage  was  placed  in  the  "north  half"  of 
each  quarter  north  of  the  center  line.  The  sec- 
tions on  the  west  line  of  the  township  were  di- 
vided as  in  the  southwest  quarter  of  section  six, 
above,  and  in  the  west  half  of  section  eighteen 
(figures  XIV  and  XV). 


»* 

3 
37* 

2.           1 
J?t3   3?  X 

go 

BO 

/6O 

/6O 

*** 

3 

2            / 

40e±  40*S 

s~ 

4-0 

QO 

6 
35*£ 

< 

80 

,~ 

7 

*.~ 

90 

i  to 

&S3 

3«t 

BO 

/to 

3k.tr 

Fig.  XVI. 


Fig.  XVII. 


Fig.  XVIII. 


The  division  of  the  fractional  sections  in  the 
north  and  west  tiers  of  the  townships  in  more 
recent  years  is  accomplished  as  illustrated  in 
figures  XVI,  XVII  and  XVIII.    As  many  reg- 
ular divisions  are  made  as  can  be  designated  by 
word  descriptions  according  to  their  relative 
position  in  the  section,  and  the  remaining  frac- 
tional "forties"  are  numbered  as  "lots"  be- 
ginning at  the  northeast  corner  of  the  section. 
While  "lot  one"  or  the  eighty  acre  tract  next 
to  the  center  line  of  the  section  does 
not  contain  one  half  of  the  acres  in 
the  "quarter"  it  is  considered  as  an 
half  and  read  the  "south  half  of  the 
northeast  quarter"   ("A"  Fig.  XVI.)   or  the 


The 

Government 

lot. 


78 


LAND  STJBVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 


''east  half   of  the  southwest  quarter"    ("B" 
Fig.  XVII.) 

Heretofore  it  was  mentioned  that  owing  to 
inaccurate  surveys,  sections  were  sometimes 
longer  than  one  mile  north  and  south.  Such  a 
tier  of  sections  is  found  just  below  township 
sixteen  north  of  the  base  line  in  the  state  of 
Illinois,  the  tier  being  composed  of  sections  one 
and  one-half  miles  in  length,  measured  north 
and  south. 

Figure  XIX 
here  shown  gives 
the  regular  divi- 
sion of  such  a  sec- 
tion and  illus- 
trates the  plan  of 
its  division  into 
"lots."  The  half 
section  line  ex- 
tends across  the 
section  at  one  half 
mile  from  the 
south  line  and  the 
acres  below  this 
line  are  reckoned 
the  "south  half" 
Fig.  xix.  of  tlie  section 

though  the  "north 

half"  is  more  than  twice  its  size;  the  figure 
(VI)    indicates  the  "center"  of  the    section. 


THE  SECTION  AND  ITS  PARTS. 


79 


A  section 
of  over 
eleven 
hundred 
acres. 


The  lot  containing  "108.12"  acres 
is  read  as  "government  lot  four  of 
the  northeast  quarter  of  section  six. ' ' 
The  above  section  contains  1141.28 
acres  and  is  one  of  the  largest  sec- 
tions in  the  rectangular  survey  system.  The 
descriptions  of  its  parts,  however,  are  simple, 
merely  giving  the  lot  number  and  then  stat- 
ing of  which  quarter  of  the  section  it  is  a  part. 
This  will  be  again  referred  to  in  the  chapter 
on  "Descriptions."  When  the  reader  reaches 
it  he  is  recommended  to  again  review  this 
chapter  in  connection  therewith. 

This  map  is  one  of  the  small  sections  in  range 
11,  east  of  the  third  principal  meridian,  and 
in  fact  it  is  section  number  7-15-11  east.  It 
contains  but  198.38  acres  with  99.28 
acres  in  the  south  half  and  99.10  acres 
in  the  north  half.  To  better  describe 
the  land  contained  each  half  is  subdi- 
vided into  quarters,  and  then  we  have 


the  S.  E.  14 


One  of  the 

small 

sections. 


of  the  S.  y2, 


fft 


SV/  I 

Y\  \ 

•f  *U  I 


which     contains     24.82 
acres.     So  for  the  other 
parts  and  so  also  for  the 
other  sections  in  range  eleven  where 
they  are  so  very  small.  Fig.  xx. 

In  the  table  of  square  measure  (chapter  I) 
it  was  given  that  "640  acres  make  one  square 
mile"  and  it  is  usually  understood  that  this 


80 


LAND  SUBVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 


is  also  a  section.  A  section  does  contain  640 
acres  when  it  is  "regular"  but  whenever  it 
is  "fractional"  its  area  varies  from  one  hun- 
dred acres  to  1200  acres  as  explained  above. 
Section  sixteen  of  each  township  is  set  aside 
for  school  purposes  and  its  survey  is  directed 
by  the  school  trustees  of  the  township.  It  is 
divided  into  lots  of  forty  or  eighty  acres  each 
and  numbered  from  one  at  the  northeast  cor- 
ner, but  there  is  no  fixed  rule  for  such  division, 


The 
township 

and  how 
it  is 

usually 
divided. 

Fig.  XXI. 

and  before  the  lots  in  any  section  sixteen  may 
be  determined  a  map  of  the  survey  must  be 
consulted.  The  only  rule  given  is  that  the 


THE  SECTION  AND  ITS  PABTS.  81 

school  section  must  be  surveyed  into  lots  so 
that  it  may  be  sold  to  best  advantage  but  no 
one  lot  shall  contain  more  than  eighty  acres. 

The  above  map,  Figure  XXI,  represents  a 
plat  of  a  township  with  the  sections  numbered 
as  has  been  explained  and  it  also  shows  the  lines 
of  the  government  lots  as  indicated  in  figures 
XIII,  XIV  and  XV.  It  illustrates  as  well  which 
of  the  sections  in  a  township  are  fractional  as 
stated  in  a  previous  paragraph. 

SUGGESTIONS. — Call  on  your  county  superin- 
tendent of  schools  and  ask  him  about  fractional 
sections  and  lots  in  a  section.  Ask  to  see  his 
record  "A." 


^glg^^il^ 


Quarter  Section  Corner. 

On  latitud.no>  line.v.i-w  looKirvi  north 
,   meridional     „        .,         ,.        west 


CHAPTER  VH. 

TOWN  LOTS  AND  SUBDIVISIONS. 

In  the  last  chapter  the  several  regular  divi- 
sions of  a  section  were  explained,  as  well  as  the 
division  of  the  fractional  or  irregular  sections, 
which  last  division,  is  accomplished  by  means 
of  the  "government  lots."  At  the  close  of 
the  chapter  the  plat  of  the  township  again  il- 
lustrated how  the  several  different  sections  are 
situated  and  numbered  according  to  their  lo- 
cation. In  a  former  chapter  the  numbering  of 
the  townships  was  explained  relative  to  their 
situation  in  a  tier  north  or  south  of  a  base  line 
and  within  some  range  east  or  west  of  a  certain 
numbered  or  named  prime  meridian. 

Therefore  any  regular  tract  of  land  can  be 
described,  if  it  lies  within  a  district  that  has 
been  surveyed  by  the  " rectangular  system"  of 
survey,  providing  the  text  thus  far 
nas  Deen  mastered.  The  description 
is  accomplished  by  first  giving  the 
part  of  the  section  to  be  described  and  if  it 
is  less  than  a  quarter  of  the  section,  the  small- 
est fractional  part  should  be  named  first.  Next, 
give  the  number  of  the  section,  then  the  num- 
ber of  the  tier  (or  township)  north  or  south 

(82) 


TOWN  LOTS  AND  SUBDIVISIONS.  83 

of  the  base  line  and  tell  if  it  is  north  or  south; 
lastly  give  the  number  of  the  range  and  tell  if  it 
is  east  or  west  of  the  principal  meridian  and 
give  the  name  of  the  meridian  from  which  you 
reckon. 

Eefer  to  figures  XI,  XXI  and  III  in  the  or- 
der given,  and  give  the  complete  description 
of  B  under  figure  XI  assuming  that  figure  XXT 
is  located  in  the  square  of  figure  III  in  which 
is  shown  the  letter  D.  It  would  be  "the  south- 
west quarter  of  section  fifteen  (15)  township 
three  (3)  north,  range  two  west  of  the prin- 
cipal meridian."  (Abbreviated  it  is  commonly 
written  S.  W.  %  15-3-2  W.— P.  M.). 

E  would  be  "the  south  half  of  the  south- 
east quarter  of  the  southeast  quarter  of  sec- 
tion fifteen,"  etc.  Finish  as  above. 

X  in  figure  XVII  would  be  "the  southeast 
quarter  of  the  northwest  quarter  of  section  num- 
ber six  (6)  township  number  three  (3)  north, 
range  number  two,  west  of  the  third  principal 
meridian.  (S.  E.  N.  W.  6-3-2  W.  3d  P.  M.). 

Y  in  figure  XVIII  would  be  '  *  government  lot 
number  three  (3)  of  the  southwest  quarter  of 
section  number  eighteen  (18)  township  (or  tier) 
number  six  (6)  north,  range  number  six  (6) 

east  of  the principal  meridian.     (Locate  it 

on  figure  III.) 

Heretofore  the  descriptions  have  all  been  in 
relation  to  the  section,  tier,  range,  base  line, 


84          LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

and  meridian,  but  when  it  is  necessary  to  de- 
scribe very  small  tracts  measured  by  feet  in 
place  of  acres  it  is  more  convenient  to  mark 
off  the  land  into  small  squares  and  to  number 
or  letter  each  square  on  a  map. 

This  division  or  map  is  called  "platting  a 
town"  and  is  accomplished  with  a  certain  de- 
gree of  formality,  simple  in  its  execution  though 
required  to  promote  the  enterprise. 

Whenever  an  individual  or  a  company  of  men 
desire  to  establish  a  city,  it  is  necessary  first 
to  acquire  the  ownership  to  a  tract  of  forty, 
eighty,  or  more  acres,  or  a  larger  part  of  some 
section,  as  the  size  of  the  town  to  be  established 
will  require. 

Having  done  this,  a  surveyor  is  then  employed 
to  divide  the  tract  purchased  into  squares  or 
"blocks"  and  these  again  into  smaller  subdivi- 
sions of  ' '  lots. ' '  The  blocks  are  separated  from 
each  other  by  roads  called  "streets"  and  the 
lots  of  each  block  are  divided  by  a  narrow  pass- 
way  called  an  "alley." 

There  is  no  arbitrary  rule  to  guide  the  sur- 
veyor in  constructing  the  block  as  to  size,  and 
they  vary  to  suit  the  fancy  of  the  owner  as  he 
may  think  will  best  suit  the  size  of  the 

HOW  a  town  to  be  built  or  founded.  In  the 
town  is 

platted,     part  laid  off  or  platted  for  the  busi- 
ness section  of  the  town,  the  "blocks" 
and  "lots"  are  usually  somewhat  smaller  than 


TOWN  LOTS  AND  SUBDIVISIONS.  85 

those  arranged  for  the  residence  portion.  Busi- 
ness lots  are  usually  twenty-five  feet  wide  by 
about  120  feet  long,  while  residence  lots  are 
more  frequently  made  fifty  feet  wide  and  some- 
what deeper. 

The  roads  in  towns  called  streets  between  the 
blocks,  are  arranged  from  forty  feet  to  sixty 
feet  wide,  and  since  the  lots  face  or  front  on  two 
streets  the  alley  is  run  through  the  center  of 
each  block  crosswise  to  the  lots,  in  order  to  give 
access  to  the  rear  of  each  of  them. 

Having  had  the  land  surveyed,  as  above,  the 
corners  of  each  block  are  marked  by  a  stone 
placed  at  the  exact  corner  of  the  block  and 
not  in  the  middle  of  the  street  or  road  as  is 
the  case  where  a  farm  corner  is  located.  The 
alley  corners  and  lot  corners  are  then  usually 
marked  by  wooden  stakes.  This  done,  the  sur- 
veyor makes  a  map  of  the  new  town,  showing 
the  blocks  and  lots  therein,  adds  his  certificate  to 
the  effect  that  he  made  the  survey  at  the  re- 
quest of  the  owner,  and  that  the  '  *  annexed  map 
represents  the  survey."  The  surveyor  then 
adds  his  signature  and  the  owner  joins  in  a 
certificate  that  he  has  had  such  survey  made, 
that  he  has  had  it  called  by  some  name,  and  that 
he  "sets  aside  the  streets  and  alleys  for  the 
use  of  the  public." 

This  certificate  of  the  owner  is  acknowledged 
by  some  officer  authorized  to  administer  oaths, 


86          LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

and  the  same  is  then  filed  for  record  by  the 
owner,  in  the  recorder's  office  of  the  county. 
This  map,  now  called  a  "plat,"  is  with  the 
certificate  copied  into  a  book  kept  for  that  pur- 
pose, and  after  that  time  the  owner,  or  any  one 
making  a  deed  to  any  part  of  the  land,  em- 
braced in  the  plat,  no  longer  refers  to  it  as  some 
part  of  a  section,  but  calls  it  some  "lot"  in 
some  certain  "block"  of  the  town  named. 

If  for  any  reason,  or  good  luck,  all  of  the  lots 
are  sold  and  there  is  need  of  more  lots,  some 
one  owning  land  adjoining  the  town 
so  Pitted  may  lay  off  land  next  to 
plat  and  it,  and  by  the  same  process  have  it 
named/  surveyed,  mapped  and  arranged  to 
be  sold  by  lots  and  blocks.  Such 
parts  so  surveyed  to  be  added  are  usually  named 
for  the  owner  who  has  it  done,  and  are  known 
as  his  addition  to  the  town. 

If  for  any  reason  the  same  person  adds  more 
than  one  plat  to  the  town,  the  second  one  is 
called  his  "second  addition,"  the  third  plat  his 
"third  addition,"  etc.  In  practice,  whenever 
a  deed  says  "Smith's  Addition"  to  a  city  and 
does  not  state  any  particular  addition,  the  first 
addition  is  always  understood  to  be  the  one 
meant.  Serious  mistakes  frequently  occur  in 
descriptions  by  not  stating  which  addition  is 
meant  when  there  is  more  than  one  addition 
named  for  the  same  man. 


TOWN  LOTS  AND  SUBDIVISIONS.  87 

When  the  plats  are  constructed,  the  owner 
having  the  survey  made  may  set  aside  any  part 
he  desires  for  use  as  a  park,  boulevard  or  a 
courthouse  square,  or  for  any  public  purpose 
whatever.  This  is  done  for  the  reason  that 
such  arrangement  will  add  to  the  attractiveness 
or  completeness  of  the  town,  and  perhaps  in- 
crease the  value  of  the  lots.  When  anyone 
buys  land  for  a  town  site  he  gets  the  whole  land 
except  the  road,  if  any,  adjoining  it.  After  he 
has  had  it  platted  for  a  town,  he  has  left  only 
what  remains  after  taking  out  the  streets  and 
alleys  and  public  grounds,  if  any  has  been  re- 
served or  set  aside  and  dedicated  for  public 
use. 

Grave  mistakes  have  been  made  ofttimes  in 
planning  town  sites,  by  making  the  streets  too 
narrow,  so  much  so  in  fact  that  the  growth  of 
the  city  is  arrested,  on  account  that  there  is 
not  room  enough  for  the  crowds  to  pass  freely 
from  one  block  to  another.  Often  the  condition 
of  the  surface  of  the  tract  surveyed  will  gov- 
ern the  form  of  the  plat  but  it  is  usually  left 
to  the  whim  of  the  surveyor  or  to  the  direction 
of  the  owner.  Modern  cities  have  less  objec- 
tionable features  than  many  of  the  older  towns 
because  experience  has  taught  many  lessons  in 
the  planning  and  establishing  of  a  "town  site.'* 
Examples  of  narrow  streets  are  found  in  many 
European  cities  as  well  as  several  of  the  cit- 


88          LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

ies  in  the  United  States — Boston,  New  York 
and  Philadelphia  being  notable  examples. 

In  these  cities  many  of  the  principal  business 
streets  are  not  only  very  narrow,  some  not  more 
than  20  or  30  feet  wide,  but  they  are  crooked 
as  well  as  narrow.  This  inconvenience  arises 
from  the  buildings  being  erected  and 
piaTstreets.  the  lot  lines  established  before  the 
proprietors  of  the  town  realize  what 
room  will  be  needed  to  accommodate  the  traffic 
of  the  growing  metropolis.  Many  times  where 
a  street  is  found  to  be  too  narrow  for  later 
conditions,  it  is  widened,  but  the  moving  back 
or  tearing  off  the  front  of  business  buildings 
is  not  only  expensive  but  laborious  as  well. 

Our  modern  cities  are  more  generally  better 
arranged  for  the  benefit  of  rapid  transit  and 
easy  passage  of  heavy  traffic.  Wide,  straight 
streets  are  laid  out  and  frequently  diagonal 
streets  or  avenues  are  located  to  shorten  the 
distances  of  travel.  Better  examples  of  im- 
proved plats  are  illustrated  by  the  plan  of  Wash- 
ington, Indianapolis,  Chicago,  Salt  Lake  City 
and  the  new  San  Francisco. 


UU     HJ.C    UVf*     fOaul    Ml  ACUU2UDUW* 

SUGGESTION. — Visit   your    abstractor's 
nd  get  him  to  show  you  a  town  plat. 


office 
and  get 


C  NcrtH) 


The  above  illustrates  one  plan  of  a  town,  together  with 
two  separate  additions  to  the  original  plat.  It  may  be  noted 
that  the  diagonal  line  on  the  north  is  controlled  by  the 
natural  boundary  of  the  river  and  location  of  the  railroad, 
but  in  planning  the  lots  they  were  arranged  due  north  and 
south  rather  than  at  right  angle  to  the  railroad,  except  in 
blocks  two  and  four  where  the  hill  required  the  arrange- 
ment given,  as  most  practical.  It  is  also  to  be  observed  that 
the  streets  are  open  to  further  additions,  but  space  herein 
did  not  permit  a  complete  map  of  the  entire  city. 

(89) 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

DESCRIPTION  OP  LAND. 
A.   DESCRIPTIONS  OF  REGULAR  TRACTS. 

In  the  previous  chapters  it  has  been  explained 
how  that  the  land  opened  for  settlement  has 
been  surveyed  and  laid  off  into  squares,  first 
in  township  size  and  then  these  divided  into 
sections. 

The  regular  fractional  parts  of  a  section  were 
shown  as  well  as  the  irregular  sized  parts  of 
the  section,  measured  by  the  ''government 
lots."  These  lot  divisions  of  the  section  are 
to  be  distinguished  from  the  "lot"  which  is 
part  of  a  "block"  in  the  town  plat. 

The  next  subject  to  be  considered  is  the  com- 
bined use  of  these  terms  and  parts  in  order  to 
properly  describe  any  tract  of  land  that  has 
been  heretofore  surveyed. 

Every  farm  location  has  a  reference  to  five 
things  and  they  are  named  in  the  following 
regular  order:  First,  the  section 
number;  second,  the  township  (or 


describing     tier)  number  and  its  location  north 

or  south  of  the  base  line;  third,  the 

range  number  and  its  position  east  or  west  of 

some  given  prime  meridian;  fourth  the  naming 

(90) 


DESCRIPTION  OF  LAND.  91 

or  numbering  of  the  meridian  referred  to,  and 
fifth,  the  name  of  the  county  and  state,  in  which 
the  farm  lies. 

The  reader  should  now  refer  to  figures  XI  and 
XII,  next  to  figure  XXI,  and  then  to  figure 
III,  in  the  order  named,  assuming  that  figure 
XXI  is  located  in  the  position  of  G  in  figure 
III.  Now,  to  give  the  complete  description  of 
B  in  figure  XI  it  would  be  read,  "the  south- 
west quarter  of  section  number  fifteen  (15), 
township  number  six  (6)  north,  range  number 

six  (6)  east  of  the principal  meridian  in 

county,  Illinois. ' '  This  for  brevity  is  often 

contracted  into  the  following:  S.  W.  x/4  15-6-6 
E. — P.  M.  So  in  describing  any  tract  of  land 
being  some  regular  fractional  part  of  a  sec- 
tion; first  give  the  part,  either  fractional  or 
government  lot  number,  of  the  section  in  which 
the  tract  to  be  described  is  located;  next  give 
the  number  of  the  section  with  reference  to  its 
location  in  the  township  (figure  XXI) ;  then 
locate  the  township  in  regard  to  its  row  num- 
ber north  or  south  of  the  base  line  and  also  with 
reference  to  its  location  east  or  west  of  the  prin- 
cipal meridian  (P.  M.),  which  governs  the  dis- 
trict in  which  the  land  lies.  (See  figure  IV  and 
addenda  showing  the  location  of  all  prime  me- 
ridians.) 

When  in  the  above  paragraph  is  mentioned 
the  description  of  some  regular  fractional  part 


92          LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

of  a  section,  the  same  directions  apply  if  the 
part  to  be  described  is  of  one  of  the  regular 
government  lots  as  numbered  in  the  fractional 
sections,  of  which  there  are  eleven  in  each  town- 
ship. (See  figure  XXI.)  First  give  the  gov- 
ernment lot  number,  and  tell  in  which  quarter 
of  the  section  it  is  located.  Next  give  the  sec- 
tion number,  the  township,  the  range  and  the 
meridian,  in  their  order  and  with  each,  state 
the  direction  to  accompany  it.  So  is  land  de- 
scribed wherever  in  the  United  States  the  rect- 
angular method  of  survey  is  employed. 

B.     DESCRIPTION  OF  IRREGULAR  TRACTS. 

Where  the  rectangular  system  of  survey  has 
not  been  adopted  or  where  a  regular  section  has 
been  cut  into  irregular  sizes,  or  even  in  a  dis- 
trict that  has  been  regularly  surveyed,  but 
where  a  river,  lake  or  mountain  has  prevented, 
the  survey  of  land  is  accomplished  under  great- 
er difficulties. 

By  referring  to  figure  IV  it  will  be  seen  that 

most  of  the  United  States  has  been  surveyed 

by  the  rectangular  system.    Yet  that  part  east 

of  the  Allegheny  Mountains  and  also  Texas  do 

not  employ  it.    Where  no  meridians 

describe  an(*  ^&Se  ^n6S  are  USe<*  *°  mar^  °^ 
land  by  the  land  into  squares,  the  survey  is 

bounds?"       accomplished  by  marking  off  large 

areas  or  plantations  into  irregular 

size  whose  angles  or  boundary  lines  are  usually 


DESCRIPTION  OF  LAND.  93 

referred  to  some  natural  monument  for  iden- 
tification, such  as  a  marked  tree,  a  hill,  a  stream 
or  some  confluence  of  rivers.  However,  a  nat- 
ural monument  is  not  always  at  hand  and  fre- 
quent some  very  unstable  marker  is  used  such 
as  an  old  tree  stump  or  the  corner  of  some 
building. 

Starting  at  some  point,  either  a  natural  mon- 
ument or  at  some  former  surveyed  line,  the  sev- 
eral boundary  lines  of  the  irregular  tract  are 
run  in  succession  until  the  whole  part  of  land 
has  been  bounded.  The  bounding  of  the  tract 
in  giving  the  description  is  called  description 
by  "metes  and  bounds." 

Some  times  a  regular  tract  is  so  described. 
B  of  figure  XI  would  be  by  this  method  de- 
scribed as  "beginning  at  the  southwest  corner 
of  section  fifteen;  thence  east  160  rods;  thence 
north  160  rods;  thence  west  160  rods;  thence 
south  160  rods  to  the  place  of  beginning. ' ' 

The  usual  "metes  and  bounds"  description 
is  not  so  simple  or  exact  as  the  above  and  we 
here  give  one  as  found  in  a  deed  recorded  in  an 
eastern  state.  "All  of  two  certain  tracts  or  par- 
cels of  land  lying  in  Middle  River  District,  in 
the  County  of  Augusta  and  State  of  Virginia, 
containing,  the  one  ten  acres  and  three  rods,  it 
being  part  of  the  land  conveyed  to  the  said  A. 
by  B.  and  wife  by  deed  bearing  date  of  the  first 
day  of  March,  1877,  and  recorded  in  the  Clerk's 


94          LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

office  of  Augusta  County  Court,  deed  book  No. 
92,  page  332;  the  other  containing  four  acres 
and  two  rods  adjoining  the  first  lot,  is  the  land 
conveyed  to  the  said  A.  by  C.  and  wife  by  deed 
bearing  date  of  the  22d  day  of  April,  1881,  and 
recorded  in  the  clerk's  office  of  Augusta  County 
Court  deed  book,  No.  97,  page  391." 

Frequently  irregular  tracts  are  surveyed 
by  beginning  at  some  known  point  and  then 
measuring  the  lines  and  angles  as  they  are  run. 

The  angle  is  given  from  a  north  and 
Angle  of  south  line  only  and  never  from  an 
usecMiT6  eas*  an(^  west  line.  In  the  reading 
description,  of  angles  the  degrees  of  the  circle 

are  considered  up  to  ninety  degrees 
either  east  or  west,  from  the  vertical  or  north 
and  south  line.  Thus  north  forty-five  degrees 
east  is  the  "northeast"  and  south  forty-five  de- 
grees west  is  exactly  ' '  southwest. ' '  Such  an  ir- 
regular tract  may  be  illustrated  by  the  follow- 
ing description: 

"Beginning  north  twenty-five  degrees  east 
twenty  chains  from  the  mouth  of  Blue  Creek, 
whence  a  burr  oak  eight  inches  in  diameter  south 
three  degrees  east  distant  twelve  links;  thence 
north  eighty-four  degrees,  twelve  minutes  east 
124  chains  thirty-one  links;  thence  north  sixty 
degrees  east  seventy-six  chains;  thence  north 
forty-one  degrees  west  ten  chains  to  the  center 
of  the  'Springfield  Koad,'  thence  southwesterly 


DESCRIPTION  OF  LAND.  95 

along  the  center  of  said  road  200  chains,  thence 
south  seventy-three  degrees  twenty-one  minutes 
east  fifty  chains,  thence  to  the  place  of  begin- 
ning. ' ' 

Often  the  bank  or  the  thread  of  a  stream  is 

made  part  of  a  boundary  and  not  infrequently 

"the  brow  of  the  hill"  is  used  for  some  of  the 

boundary    line.      Another    method 

Poor  lines     use(j  is  to  begin  at  the  "northeast 

and  points  of 

descriptions,  corner  of  Sam  Smith's  lower  tarm 

where  it  corners  with  the  land  of 
James  Hamilton. ' '  Then  by  following  the  own- 
ership lines  around  the  place  the  boundaries  are 
indicated;  and  as  a  last  index  the  community 
name  of  the  farm,  ranch  or  plantation  is  given. 

From  the  above  it  will  be  seen  that  the  rec- 
tangular method  of  description  is  not  only  the 
shortest  and  simplest,  but  it  is  an  absolute 
fact  that  by  this  system,  no  two  tracts  anywhere 
in  the  United  States  can  have  the  same  descrip- 
tion, and  a  correct  description  will  infallibly  lo- 
cate any  piece  of  land  described  by  it  in  any 
state  whatever. 

The  above  are  sample  descriptions  of  farm 

land  only  while  town  lots  are  sim- 

StaSftoS.   Ply  described  as  "lot  five  of  block 

ten  in  the  original  town,  now  city 

of  Tuscola,  Illinois,"  etc. 

But  it  frequently  occurs  that  not  a  whole  lot 
is  conveyed  and  if  the  part  to  be  described  is 


96          LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

not  an  equal  fractional  part,  it  must  be  bounded 
by  measurements,  angles,  etc. 

Again  refer  to  figure  XII  and  notice  that  J. 
is  the  east  half  of  the  east  half  of  section  six- 
teen (16).  If  it  is  a  regular  section,  it  is  also 
described  as  the  "east  160  acres  of  section  six- 
teen," but  not  "160  acres  on  the  east  side  of 
section  sixteen."  Be  careful  to  note  the  differ- 
ence. The  first  description  is  definite  evenly 
off  the  east  side  of  the  section,  while 

Aroid  the  last  description  may  be  irregu- 

confusion  J 

by  care.        lar,  triangular  or  evenly,  and  is  not 

exact.  To  avoid  confusion  it  is  a  bet- 
ter plan  to  say  so  many  feet,  rods  or  acres 
evenly  off  the  east,  or  west  side,  etc. 

The  utmost  care  should  be  exercised  in  giv- 
ing the  description  of  property  because  even 
with  the  greatest  diligence  errors  often  slip  into 
the  records,  and  in  after  years  they  are  the 
source  of  much  annoyance  and  cause  material 
loss  to  the  succeeding  owners  of  the  property. 

SUGGESTION. — Visit  your  abstract  office  and 
ask  to  see  the  government  survey  of  the  town- 
ships in  your  county.  These  maps  will  show 
all  of  the  government  lots  and  the  abstracter 
will  be  glad  to  explain  any  points  in  this  chap- 
ter not  already  understood. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

DEFICIENT   DESCRIPTIONS. 

In  the  preceding  chapters  of  this  section,  it 
has  been  shown  how  to  locate  real  estate  by 
proper  description,  and  in  fact  the  whole  mat- 
ter of  identifying  a  farm  or  lot  is  in  giving  its 
exact  location.  * '  Describing  land"  as  it  is  called, 
is  giving  the  location  of  the  tract  in  such  clear 
and  exact  language  that  the  part  in  question 
may  be  distinguished  apart  from  any  and  all 
surrounding  territory.  Laterally 
Locating  "describing"  land  is  telling  of  its 
describing  Physical  properties,  character  of 
land.  surface,  drainage,  soil,  etc.,  but  by 

common  custom  and  usage  "locat- 
ing" land  is  termed  "giving  the  description," 
and  herein  describing  land  will  be  used  to  con- 
form to  the  custom,  and  it  will  be  understood 
that '  *  legal  descriptions ' '  are  intended. 

Many  times  through  ignorance  or  careless- 
ness the  legal  description  of  a  property  trans- 
ferred is  imperfectly  given  and  this  causes 
much  confusion  and  trouble  in  after  years.  If 
a  property  is  once  improperly  described  in  a 
transfer,  the  title  is  not  complete  or  perfect, 

(97) 


98          LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

that  one  transfer  or  "link"  in  the 
the  title.       chain  of  title  is  defective.    Each  re- 
corded transfer  of  a  title  is  called  a 


.  t 


link"  and  the  whole  title,  like  a  chain  is  no 
stronger  than  the  weakest  link.  Descriptions 
by  the  rectangular  survey  are  comparatively 
simple  and  easy  to  give  but  it  is  often  quite  dif- 
ficult and  complicated  where  the  whole  descrip- 
tion rests  on  a  "metes  and  bounds  method." 

No  one  except  some  person  competent  and  ac- 
customed to  the  methods  of  transfer  should  be 
permitted  to  draft  instruments  of  conveyance 
and  a  reasonable  fee  paid  for  a  correct  drawing 
of  a  deed  will  ofttimes  save  an  expensive  in- 
vestment to  correct  an  error  by  a  suit. 

For  example  A.  refused  to  pay  B.,  an  ab- 
stracter,  a  fee  of  one  dollar  to  draw  a  deed  be- 
cause C.,  "the  squire,"  would  do  it  for  a  quar- 
ter. C.  did  the  work  for  A.  when  he  bought  his 
farm  of  D.  and  some  four  or  five  years  after- 
wards when  A.  sold  the  property  it  was  discov- 
ered he  had  no  title  whatever  to  the 

"Pennywise  property.    "The  squire"  had  utter- 
but  pound      {L   f  .,  J;   .  .    ,. 
foolish."        ly  failed  in  the  description  and  A. 

had  not  received  a  conveyance  of  the 
farm  from  D.  This  might  have  been  cured  by 
the  execution  of  a  new  deed,  but  D.  had  died  in 
the  meantime  leaving  minor  heirs,  and  only  by 
a  suit  in  court  could  the  defect  be  cured.  The 
saving  (?)  of  the  seventy-five  cents  cost  a  law- 


DEFICIENT  DESCRIPTIONS.  99 

suit  of  some  couple  hundred  dollars.  (It  hap- 
pened in  Illinois.) 

Following  are  given  a  few  examples  or  er- 
roneous or  ambiguous  descriptions,  which  are 
selected  from  the  public  records.  Examine  them 
carefully  and  observe  what  ludicrous  attempts 
at  descriptions  they  are;  yet  one  or  many  just 
such  may  be  connected  with  the  title  to  the  land 
in  which  you  are  vitally  interested,  and  only  an 
abstract  will  ever  disclose  it. 

"What  does  it  matter,"  some  one  inquires, 
"if  there  is  a  defect?"  At  some  time  it  will  be 
disclosed  and  the  sooner  the  better,  because  if 
discovered  in  time  there  will  be  little  difficulty 
in  making  the  correction.  But  if  the  defect  runs 
on,  expensive  litigation  will  be  the  result  as 
shown  in  the  above  example. 

Or  again  the  owner  contracts  to  sell,  an  ab- 
stract is  prepared,  the  error  shown,  the  trade 
fails,  a  damage  suit  results.  Or  in  case  the 
owner  had  contracted  to  buy  and  had  paid  part 
of  the  contract  price,  his  title  could  not  be  ac- 
cepted for  a  loan  he  desired,  his  purchase  could 
not  be  completed,  he  forfeited  the  money  already 
paid  and  lost  many  times  the  expense  of  secur- 
ing an  abstract,  and  of  having  his  title  cor- 
rected. Delays  are  expensive.  In  time  of  peace 
order  cm  abstract. 

A  few  sample  descriptions  which  have  been 
found  among  the  Public  Records. 


100        LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

1.  The  south  side  of  the  north  end  of  the  west 

half  of  the  northeast  quarter. 

2.  Twenty-eight  acres  in  the  northwest  quar- 

ter. 

3.  The  west  side  of  lot  8,  block  26. 

4.  Forty  acres  more  or  less  off  the 
Some 

nonsensical  west  side  of  the  northwest  quar- 

descriptions  f,.,, 

that  have  wr' 

caused          5.  Beginning  at  the  northwest  cor- 
troubie.  ner  °^  the  blacksmith  shop. 

6.  The  160-acre  farm  I  now  own. 

7.  All  the  property  I  own  in  Newman. 

8.  The  east  division  (!)  of  the  southwest  quar- 

ter. 

9.  One  fourth  of  eighty  acres  of  the  undivided 

land  in  section  23. 

10.  Beginning  at  the  northwest  corner  of  Salis- 

bury's   land.      (Where    does    Salisbury 
own?) 

11.  The  undivided  interest  in  three-eighths  of 

the  northeast  quarter. 

12.  A  house  and  lot  east  of  the  United  Breth- 

ren Church. 

THE  ABOVE  SAMPLES  FEOM  ILLINOIS. 

13.  Commencing   at   the  northwest   corner   of 

the  fourth  row  of  grapevines  in  the  Brown 
vineyard  in  the  first  ward  of  Sandusky. 

14.  Thence  northerly  on  a  line  of  post  holes 

now  dug  for  a  new  fence.    (Ohio.) 


DEFICIENT  DESCBIPTIONS.  101 

15.  Part  of  the  Hallam  Tract  in  Perkins  Town- 

ship, beginning  at  the  north  side  of  the 
driveway  to  the  home  of  Seth  Tompkins. 
(Michigan.) 

16.  Commencing  at  a  rock  on  the  top  of  a  hill 

east  of  my  barn;  then  west  to  the  creek; 
up  the  creek  seven  miles  ;  then  back  to  the 
rock.  (  California.  ) 

17.  The  east  half  of  my  farm  in  Wayne  Coun- 

ty containing  about  5000  acres.  (Califor- 
nia.) 

18.  Four  acres  in  the  shape  of  a  heater  on  the 

north  side  of  the  road  in  the  northwest 
corner  of  Section  10.  (Illinois.) 

19.  All  the  west  part  of  lot  8  in  block  four  which 

lies  west  of  a  certain  fence  now  standing 
on  said  lot  eight,  being  100  feet  more  or 
less  of  said  west  part.  (Missouri.) 

20.  Beginning  at  an  iron  stake  driven  in  the 

ice,  etc.     (Michigan.) 

21.  One  grain  of  sand  off  the  north 
The  side  of  lot  10,  etc.     (Newago 


conveyed.      22.  Beginning  at  the  southwest  cor- 
ner of  Mol's  land  sold  on  a 

contract,  on  the  north  line  of  Lake  street, 

etc. 
23.  Commencing  at  a  point  in  the  center  of  the 

plank  road  east  from  an  oak  tree  on  which 

the   gate   opposite   the   Hindshill   house 

hangs,  etc. 


102        LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

24.  Thence  along  the  center  of  the  driveway  to 

a  clump  of  bamboo;  thence  in  a  westerly 
direction  to  a  water  tank;  thence  north- 
erly along  a  picket  fence,  etc.  (Wiscon- 
sin.) 

25.  An  old   man  in   explaining  the   different 

lengths  as  given  of  the  adjoining  line 

A  variable     of  two  lots  said.  "I  tell  you,  it  was 

measuring  .  * 

tape.  like   this.     Old   man   Hilly er    drew 

them  deeds,  and  he  and  I  measured 
them  off.  We  used  the  painter  of  the 

boat  which  was — feet  long,  but  it  might 
have  stretched  or  got  knotted  with  use." 

(New  York  City.) 

26.  Thence  north  to  a  point  two  feet  north  of  a 

red  barn,  etc.,  and  reserving  the  right  to 
remove  said  barn.  (The  barn  was  prompt- 
ly removed  and  no  other  monument 
erected.  Michigan.) 

27.  Beginning  at  the  southwest  corner  of  the 

barn,  since  removed,  etc.  (Boone  Co. 
Mo.) 

SUGGESTION. — Visit  the  office  of  your  ab- 
stracter  and  ask  to  see  some  misdescriptions 
in  your  own  county.  Examine  an  abstract  or 
a  deed  and  see  if  you  can  find  an  error  in  the 
description  of  the  property  as  given. 


CHAPTER  X. 

ORIGIN  OF  INDIVIDUAL,  OWNERSHIP. 

"In  the  beginning  God  created  the  Heaven 

and  the  Earth."    "So  God  created  Man  in  his 

own  image,   in  the   image   of  God 

The  first       created   he    him,   male   and   female 

temporal 

owner.  created  he  them;  and  God  blessed 
them  and  called  their  name  Adam  in 
the  day  when  they  were  created ;  and  God  gave 
Adam  dominion  over  the  Earth  and  all  things 
therein. ' ' 

Thus  is  the  original  record  of  ownership 
given  in  the  first  chapter  of  Genesis.  For  the 
history  of  ownership  from  the  time  of  Adam  to 
the  close  of  the  flood  when  Noah  and  his  sons 
were  in  possession  of  the  land,  the  reader  is  re- 
ferred to  the  first  eight  chapters  of  the  same 
book.  During  the  eons  of  the  time  from  Noah  to 
near  one  thousand,  A.  D.,  there  is  little  record 
of  individual  possession,  as  the  lands  of  the 
Earth  were  held  by  tribes,  kingdoms,  monarch- 
ies and  empires,  as  success  in  war  gave  the 
victor  dominion  over  the  possessions  of  the 
vanquished. 

About  1000,  A.  D.,  the  method  of  owner- 
ship known  as  "the  feudal  system  of  land  ten- 

(103) 


104          LAND  SUEVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

ure"  had  its  rise  in  England  whereby  a  "lord" 

was  granted  the  use  of  a  separate 

The  feudal    b0(iy  of  land  but  on  the  condition 

system  of 

land  tenure,   that  he  would  furnish  the  king  with 

men  to  make  up  the  king's  army 
when  so  required.  His  ownership  was  not  of 
the  soil  but  only  of  its  right  of  use  for  a  time 
and  even  this  right  did  not  descend  by  inherit- 
ance, and  he  could  not  convey  his  possession 
without  consent  of  the  king. 

History  relates  that  when  William  the  Con- 
queror became  kind  of  England,  he  confiscated 
all  lands  of  those  who  had  supported  Harold, 
Earl  of  Wessex,  and  then  either  by  persuasion 
or  force,  induced  (?)  all  other  land  owners  to 
surrender  their  possessions  to  the  king  and  they 
to  receive  them  back  as  vassals  of  the  crown. 

Thus  in  theory  all  land  belonged  to  the  king 
and  the  vassal  had  the  use  of  it  only  so  long 
as  he  rendered  the  required  service  to  the 
crown. 

Those  who  held  land  directly  from  the  king 
were  called  barons;  they  in  turn  divided  their 
holdings  to  under  lords,  requiring  from  each 
some  service  in  return.  The  second  party  could 
also  sub-infeudate  it  and  this  was  carried  down 
into  still  other  divisions  to  many  smaller  parts. 

As  an  example  in  the  days  of  Edward  the 
First,  one  Roger  of  St.  Germans  held  certain 
land  from  Robert  of  Bedford,  as  his  immediate 


ORIGIN  OF  INDIVIDUAL,  OWNERSHIP.      105 

overlord ;  Robert  of  Bedford  held  the  lands  un- 
der Richard  of  Ilchester,  who  held  under  Alan 
of  Chartres,  who  held  under  King  of  Scotland, 
who  held  under  the  King  of  England. 

Nor  was  the  idea  of  single  possession  in- 
ferred when  King  James  the  First  of  England 
gave  to  the  colony  which  founded  Jamestown, 
a  charter  to  possess  "all  that  space  and  circuit 
of  land  lying  from  the  sea-coast  up  into  the 
land,  throughout  from  sea  to  sea,  west  and 
northwest. ' ' 

It  is  not  possible  for  us  to  trace  the  owner- 
ship of  America  back  to  its  origin,  except  as  we 
read  the  records  in  the  underlying  strata,  or 
study  the  history  of  past  ages,  by  the  metal  and 
flint  ofttimes  found  in  cliff  and  cave.  For  prac- 
tical and  for  all  legal  purposes  we  may  confine 
our  investigation  in  the  origin  of  soil  owner- 
ship to  that  period  of  time  since  the  discovery 
of  America  by  Christopher  Columbus. 

Columbus  found  here  the  American  Indian 
who  lived  under  tribal  government  and  who 
wandered  from  district  to  district,  removing 
from  place  to  place  as  the  tribe  was  led  by  con- 
quest or  driven  by  necessity.  The  Indian,  un- 
til very  recent  years,  had  no  idea  of  private 
ownership  of  land,  but  his  possession  was  held 
by  the  tribe.  Recently  the  United  States  Gov- 
ernment has  allotted  many  quarter  sections  to 
the  Indian  in  a  division  of  the  remnant  of  his 
possession  prior  to  that  of  the  White  Man. 


106        LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND 


With  the  discovery  of  America,  began  own- 

ership of  the  country  by  civilized  nations,  and 

history  recites  that  "Columbus  took  possession 

of  the  new  continent  in  the  name  of 

The  first       the  crown  of  Spain."    He  made  no 

partition  .    .  J 

of  record.  division  of  the  new  continent  and 
none  was  attempted  until  Pope  Al- 
exander VI  sought  to  "partition"  the  "New 
World"  between  Spain  and  Portugal.  In  1493 
he  issued  a  proclamation  *  '  dividing  the  Heathen 
Lands  into  two  equal  parts"  by  a  North  and 
South  line  located  one  hundred  leagues  west  of 
the  Azore  Islands.  To  Portugal  was  alloted 
all  of  the  "new  lands"  lying  east  of  this  line 
while  Spain  was  given  all  lying  to  the  west. 
And  this  is  the  first  "partition  suit"  recorded 
of  American  Soil,  though  it  was  to  nations  and 
not  to  individuals. 

The  American  continent,  however,  became 
more  divided  as  other  of  the  European  explor- 
ers reached  its  shores  and  Spam's  ownership 
was  soon  in  dispute  at  many  places.  France 
early  took  possession  of  the  valley  of  the  St. 
Lawrence.  The  Holland  explorers  settled  along 
the  Hudson.  Men  from  England  located  about 
the  James  River  and  the  waters  tributary  there- 
to. None  of  the  above  peoples,  however,  under- 
stood how  broad  was  the  new  continent,  how 
vast  was  its  area  or  how  far  from  the  Atlantic 
shore  did  the  land  extend  westward  to  reach 


ORIGIN  OF  INDIVIDUAL  OWNERSHIP.      107 

the  waters  of  the  Pacific.  We  read  "that  Cap- 
tain John  Smith  explored  up  the  James  River 
expecting  to  find  a  passage  at  its  head  waters 
to  the  Pacific  Ocean,"  having  in  mind  the 
thought  expressed  in  his  charter  from  the  king, 
a  possession  "from  sea  to  sea,"  as  stated  above. 
For  a  long  time  the  same  idea  prevailed,  of 
the  short  distance  between  oceans  and  whenever 
the  king  of  England  disposed  of  land  in  Amer- 
ica to  land  companies  he  described 
ii;  as  "beginning  at  the  western  bor- 


of  the  der  of  the  Atlantic  Ocean  and  run- 

states.          fling  westward  to  the  sea."    When 


later  the  Mississippi  Eiver  was  dis- 
covered and  its  existence  made  known  to  the 
people,  its  shore  was  made  the  western  bound- 
ary of  the  United  States  and  so  remained  until 
the  '  *  Louisiana  Purchase.  '  * 

Up  until  the  time  of  the  Revolutionary  War 
the  land  comprising  the  United  States  east  of 
the  Mississippi,  except  Florida,  was  claimed  by 
those  colonies  from  the  European  countries 
which  had  made  settlements  along  the  Atlantic. 
Florida  and  the  territory  west  of  the  Missis- 
sippi was  held  by  Spain  in  pursuance  of  her  dis- 
coveries and  explorations. 

At  the  close  of  the  Revolution  the  Thirteen 
Colonies  possessed  the  territory  of  the  United 
States  east  of  the  Mississippi  except  the  Span- 


108          LAND  SUBVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

ish  holdings  in  Florida,  for  with  the 
in  America.  Declaration  of  Independence  the 
American  colonists  declared  for  free 
and  absolute  ownership  of  the  soil,  no  longer 
held  under  a  feudal  system  and  no  longer  sub- 
servient to  any  King.  By  the  Declaration  of 
Independence  all  title  to  colonial  domain  passed 
from  the  king  to  the  people  of  the  United 
States. 

Thus  were  freeholds  created.  Men  were  free, 
for  the  first  time,  to  convey  real  estate  by  deed 
without  consent  of  any  sovereign. 

But  owing  to  conflicting  claims  of  the  va- 
rious colonies  it  was  with  difficulty  that  an  union 
was  accomplished.  Virginia  was  the  largest 
claimant  to  territory  west  of  the  Alleghanies, 
from  the  Ohio  to  the  Great  Lakes.  Much  of 
this  was  disputed  by  Massachusetts  and  Con- 
necticut, and  it  was  not  until  as  late  as  1790 
that  all  of  this  disputed  area  was  ceded  to  the 
general  government  of  the  United  States  and 
the  original  thirteen  colonies  merged  into  one 
nation  with  individual  boundaries  near  what 
they  are  today. 

This  was  the  origin  of  individual  ownership  in 
America,  the  colonists  confirming  possession  of 
those  in  occupation  under  claim  of  title  in  the 
separate  colonies  and  the  remaining  portion  of 
the  vast  domain  now  belonging  to  the  United 
State  of  America. 


ORIGIN  OF  INDIVIDUAL  OWNERSHIP.       109 

Acquisition  of  new  territory  has  enlarged  the 

area  of  the  United  States,  but  title  to  all  parts 

of  the  country  later  acquired  either 

territory       *>y  conquest,  accession  or  purchase, 

acquired  by  and  not  owned  by  individuals  at  the 

states0         date  of  its  acquisition,  passed  to  the 

United  States  Government,  and  is 

alienated  only  by  authority  of  the  Congress  and 

under  direction  of  the  President. 

In  tracing  ownership  of  many  titles  in  Flor- 
ida, Texas,  California,  some  states  formed  from 
the  Louisiana  Purchase  and  in  other  states,  the 
origin  dates  back  of  United  States  possession 
of  the  territory,  owing  as  above  stated,  that 
ownership  of  many  private  tracts  was  con- 
firmed in  the  individual  possessor  when  the  ter- 
ritory was  ceded  to  the  United  States  Govern- 
ment. 

The  Government,  after  acquiring  a  territory, 
subdivides  it  into  suitable  tracts  for  settlement 
as  explained  in  the  previous  lessons  on  survey- 
ing, and  disposes  of  smaller  tracts  to  individ- 
ual purchasers  who  are  also  free  to  transfer 
them  as  they  may  choose. 

SUGGESTION. — Read  the  ''Articles  of  Confed- 
eration" and  study  the  map  of  the  United 
States  shown  in  figure  VII  at  page  66.  Note 
carefully  the  accession  of  territory. 


CHAPTEE  XI. 

EXCHANGE  OF  OWNERSHIP. 

With  the  ownership  of  the  public  domain  in 
the  United  States  Government  and  that  of  par- 
ticular tracts  of  land  in  some  single  individual, 
the  next  condition  is  to  inquire  how  this  "pos- 
session of  fact,"  this  "right  of  occupancy"  may 
be  transferred  from  one  to  another. 

It  must  be  understood  at  this  time  that  the 

discussions  in  this  volume  have  to  do  with  real 

estate  or  landed  property,  and  while 

Real  estate      some  of  the  rights  of  its  enjoyment 

property0^1    may  be  considered  under  the  term 
distinguished,  personal   property,   the   ownership 

referred  to  here  is  of  the  soil,  and 
classed  as  '  *  real  property. ' ' 1 

It  is  stated  that  A.  has  sold  his  farm  to  B. 
or  has  transferred  his  rights  to  B.  Now  it  is 
a  fact  that  there  is  no  change  whatever  in  the 
nature,  character  or  appearance  of  the  "farm," 
the  land  itself  remains  just  where  it  was,  but 
the  "title"  to  the  farm  has  been  handed  over, 

1.  For  a  comprehensive  explanation  of  the  terms  real 
and  personal  property  the  reader  is  referred  to  "Laws  of 
Real  Property,"  chapter  I,  by  Geo.  W.  Warvell. 

(110) 


EXCHANGE  OF  OWNERSHIP.  Ill 

the  "  rights  of  succession"  that  A.  enjoyed  have 
been  passed  to  B.  for  his  use  and  pleasure. 

Unlike  the  transfer  of  personal  property, 
which  is  itself  delivered,  handed  over  and  taken 
away,  the  transfer  of  real  estate  is  accomplished 
by  the  giving  over  only  the  evidence  of  the  ex- 
change of  ownership. 

In  early  times  this  was  accomplished  by  very 
crude  methods.  It  is  related  that  at  first  when- 
ever one  party  intended  to  sell  another  a  piece  of 
land,  they  went  upon  the  land  to  be  sold,  clasped 
hands,  and  before  witnesses  spoke  certain  set 
phrases,  one  to  the  other,  of  offer  and  accept- 
ance, broke  a  clod  of  the  earth  between  them, 
or  the  seller  gave  to  the  purchaser  a  twig  or 
spear  of  grass  plucked  from  the  tract  conveyed, 
and  by  this  elaborate  formality  transferred  the 
possession.  Such  conveyance  was  styled  "Liv- 
ery of  Seizen." 

Later  it  is  said  the  parties  broke  a  stone  be- 

tween them  and  yet  still  later  both  signed  some 

sort  of  compact  and  then  tore  it  in  half,  plac- 

ing one  part  of  the  stone  or  one  piece 


Early  Of  j^e  parchment  in  some  place  of 

methods  of  •     •»_"•  j    £        ru- 

transfer.  safe  keeping  reserved  for  this  use, 
the  remaining  half  being  passed  to 
the  new  owner.  When  the  party  in  possession 
of  the  exchanged  fragment  desired  to  prove 
ownership  he  could  go  to  the  portion  on  de- 
posit and  if  the  indentures  of  the  part  on  de- 


112        LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

posit  fitted  the  torn  or  broken  edge  of  the  half 
he  held,  it  was  said  to  " witness"  the  title.  This 
custom  and  method  may  have  given  rise  to  the 
expression  now  so  commonly  nsed  in  the  open- 
ing clause  of  contracts,  beginning,  "This  in- 
denture witnesseth,"  etc. 

The  above  methods  proved  too  cumbersome 
and  crude  for  our  modern  times,  and  great  im- 
provements have  been  accomplished  in  the  man- 
ner of  transferring  the  ownership  of  real  prop- 
erty from  one  to  another.  It  must  be  under- 
stood however  that  there  are  but  two  ways  by 
which  property  is  passed  from  one  to  the  other, 
viz.,  first,  by  the  act  of  individuals  and,  second, 
by  operation  of  law. 

The  simplest  method  the  "act  of  individuals" 
is  accomplished  by  the  party  selling  signing  a 
paper  reciting  that  for  a  certain  sum  named 
he  does  bargain,  sell  and  transfer  to  the  party 
purchasing,  naming  him,  certain  lots  or  land, 
describing  it.  This  instrument  of  writing  by 
reason  of  it  witnessing  the  act  or 
Origin  of  deed  of  the  parties  is  called  a  ' '  deed 

the  term  ,    „  ,,  ,    . 

"deed."         of  conveyance"  and  fully  explains 
the  transaction.    It  names  both  par- 
ties, recites  the  amount  given  in  exchange  for 
the  property  and  describes  the  property  sold. 
When  the  purchaser  receives  such  a  "deed" 
the  next  step  is  to  have  it  copied  in  a  book 
kept  and  preserved  for  this  sole  purpose.    He 


EXCHANGE  OF  OWNERSHIP.  113 

takes  it  to  the  public  recorder  who  makes  a  copy 
of  the  instrument  and  thus  preserves  the  his- 
tory of  the  transaction  in  the  public  records. 

The  records  of  deeds  are  preserved  in  a  se- 
cure vault  so  that  in  case  the  original  becomes 
lost,  proof  of  the  transaction  can  be  referred 
to. 

An  owner  of  land  often  desires  to  convey  it, 

and  to  have  the  conveyance  not  to  take  effect 

until  his  death.     He  does  this  by  writing  out 

his  directions  as  to  how  his  property  shall  be 

divided  and  disposed  of  at  his  death, 


The  win  as   g^d  this  instrument  of  conveyance 
distinguished.  * 

from  a  deed,  is  called  a  "will"  because  it  ex- 
presses the  will  of  the  former  owner 
as  to  the  transfer  of  his  property.  The  com- 
plete transfer,  however,  requires  the  aid  of  a 
proper  court  to  "prove  the  will,"  and  while 
the  conveyance  is  considered  the  act  of  the  liv- 
ing it  needs  some  "operation  of  law"  to  accom- 
plish it.  Where  a  land  owner  dies  leaving  no 
will  or  direction  as  to  how  his  property  shall 
be  divided,  his  estate  descends  by  inheritance 
or  entirely  by  operation  of  law,  and  his  heirs 
share  in  the  lands  and  goods  according  to  the 
"laws  of  the  state"  where  the  property  is  lo- 
cated. 

Again,  it  often  happens  that  a  land  owner 
needs  to  borrow  money  for  some  enterprise  and 
gives  as  security  for  its  repayment  a  pledge  of 

8 


114        LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

his  land.  This  pledge  is  a  written  instrument 
in  form  of  a  deed  and  is  in  fact  a  sort  of  con- 
veyance of  the  property  to  the  party  furnishing 
the  money.  It  recites  the  parties,  the  amount  of 
money  borrowed,  names  the  rate  of  interest, 
states  when  the  money  is  to  be  repaid,  etc.  It 
further  provides  that  if  the  borrower 

wh°  OWns  the  land  f  *&*  to  rePaF  the 
sum  borrowed  when  due,  his  land 

shall  be  sold  under  order  of  a  proper  court  and 
some  one  appointed  by  the  court  makes  the  sale 
and  transfers  the  ownership  of  the  borrower 
to  the  party  purchasing  at  the  sale  held  by  or- 
der of  the  court.  This  conveyance  is  wholly  by 
"operation  of  law"  and  the  original  owner  is 
as  fully  divested  of  his  rights  in  the  property 
as  if  he  had  made  a  full  conveyance,  himself, 
of  the  property  to  the  new  owner. 

One  thing  to  bear  in  mind  is  that  all  trans- 
fer of  ownership  of  real  estate  to  be  binding 
and  complete  should  be  accomplished  accord- 
ing to  the  rules  prescribed  by  the  laws  of  the 
state  wherein  the  land  is  located. 

If  a  deed  is  incorrect  in  its  form  of  signa- 
tures, the  transfer  may  not  be  complete.  If 
the  decrees  of  court  are  not  properly  drawn 
and  if  the  processes  of  law  are  not  correctly  ob- 
served, the  transfer  may  not  be  complete  and 
the  new  owner  might  at  some  future  time  suf- 


EXCHANGE  OF  OWNERSHIP.  115 

fer  loss  on  account  of  either  of  the  above  er- 
rors. 

Every  purchaser  of  real  property  for  value 
should  satisfy  himself  that  all  transfers,  his 
own  and  all  prior  thereto,  have  been  regular, 
and  under  no  circumstances  should  he  rely  on 
the  work  of  any  one  not  skilled  in  the 
The  methods  of  conveyancing.  A  dollar 

Sways*  saved  (?)  in  employing  a  cheap 
the  best.  "squire"  to  attend  to  such  impor- 
tant transactions  has  often  de- 
manded the  payment  of  a  much  larger  sum  later 
when  it  was  necessary  to  correct  the  error  of 
the  cheaper  attorney  who  had  prepared  the 
deeds  or  who  had  carried  the  suit  of  foreclos- 
ure through  court.  Be  advised  and  always  re- 
quire the  services  of  the  best  talent  to  be  had 
at  such  times,  and  you  will  have  fewer  troubles 
in  the  future. 

SUGGESTION. — Visit  an  abstract  office  and  ask 
the  abstracter  for  a  blank  deed  form,  and  a 
copy  of  a  will.  Have  him  to  explain  how  a  title 
passes  by  each  of  them. 


CHAPTER  XII. 

RECORD  OF  OWNERSHIP. 

The  first  record  of  a  transfer  of  land,  or  the 
exchange  of  ownership  is  found  in  the  seven- 
teenth verse  of  the  twenty-third  chapter  of 
Genesis,  where  Abraham  purchased  a  field  from 
Ephron. 

The  practice  of  keeping  a  public  record  of  all 
the  various  transfers  affecting  the  title  to  real 
estate  is  of  recent  origin.  Like  tribal  posses- 
sion, the  occupancy  of  land  in  former  times  de- 
termined its  ownership.  Later  when  this  was 
exchanged  by  one  individual  to  another  it  gave 
rise  to  the  need  of  the  evidence  of 

Why  public    transfer  as  explained  in  the  previous 

records  are       ,  . 

kept  chapter.     As  the  possession  passed 

in  succession  these  deeds  were  kept 
and  always  given  to  the  last  purchaser,  but  some 
were  frequently  lost  and  also  in  time  they  be- 
came quite  bulky  and  cumbersome  to  preserve. 
This  condition  demanded  a  more  permanent 
and  less  burdensome  method  of  keeping  trace 
of  ownership  and  as  mentioned  heretofore  the 
office  of  public  recorder  was  created  for  keep- 
ing a  record  of  the  transfers.  This  official  not 
only  makes  a  record  or  copy  of  deeds  but  copies 

(116) 


RECORD  OF  OWNERSHIP.  117 

as  well  all  other  instruments  that  in  any  way 
affect  the  title  to  real  estate. 

The  prime  object  for  having  a  deed  recorded 
after  the  purchaser  receives  it  from  the  seller, 
is  to  preserve  the  evidence  of  the  transaction. 
If  then  the  original  deed  be  lost  the  new  owner 
of  the  property  may  go  to  the  public  record  and 
by  this  official  copy,  prove  that  he  had  pur- 
chased the  land  and  that  he  had  the  right  to  it. 

Did  the  new  owner  from  a  lack  of  interest, 
through  ignorance  or  carelessness,  fail  to  have 
this  deed  recorded  and  did  he  lose  the  origi- 
nal, he  might  have  trouble  in  proving  his  rights. 
The  former  owner  might,  in  a  contrary  mood, 
refuse  to  make  another  deed;  or  the  grantor 
might  in  the  meantime  have  died  and  his  heirs 
knowing  nothing  of  the  sale,  would  be  unwill- 
ing to  make  the  transfer.  In  either  case  the 
purchaser  would  be  to  the  expense  of  securing 
a  new  deed  or  failing  in  this  he 

Not  an         would  have  to  pay  the  cost  of  an  ex- 
deeds  are  ,  ..        ,        .,  ,. 
recorded.       pensive  lawsuit  and  at  the  same  time 

be  in  jeopardy  of  losing  his  prop- 
erty altogether.  Yet,  despite  this  fact,  there 
are  many  old  deeds  lying  in  bureaus,  desks,  or 
safes,  not  yet  recorded,  which  is  a  very  dan- 
gerous practice. 

One  other  reason  for  having  a  deed  recorded 
immediately  after  the  purchase  is  completed  is 
to  proclaim  to  the  public  that  you  have  acquired 


118        LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

the  property.  In  most  states  the  first  deed  of 
record  is  paramount  in  right  of  title;  and  did 
your  seller  make  a  second  deed  to  the  property 
after  executing  the  deed  to  you,  and  did  the 
second  purchaser  put  his  deed  of  record  first, 
ahead  of  yours,  nis  title  would  prevail  and  you 
would  have  none. 

Of  course  you  might  bring  suit  against  your 
grantor  but  you  put  yourself  in  need  of  a  law- 
suit and  in  the  meantime  your  seller  may  have 
moved  far  away. 

Not  all  states  have  a  law  requiring  a  record 
of  the  original  deeds,1  and  a  notable  example 
is  that  of  Louisiana.  Here  notaries  public  are 
commissioned  to  draft  all  deeds  each  in  his  sep- 
arate district,  and  when  the  deed  is 
TJje  executed,  the  notary  sends  it  to  the 

method.  public  recorder  who  makes  only  a 
brief  record  of  the  instrument  and 
no  complete  copy  at  all.  The  original  instru- 
ment is  then  returned  to  the  notary's  office 
from  whence  it  came  and  when  a  sufficient  num- 
ber have  accumulated  they  may  be  bound  into 
a  volume. 

These  original  deeds  remain  about  the  no- 
tary's office,  not  filed  in  secure  vaults  but  lying 

1.  Laws  requiring  lands  transfers  to  be  registered  were 
passed  by  the  early  colonies  as  follows:  Massachusetts 
in  1636  and  1641,  Connecticut  in  1639,  Virginia  in  1639,  New 
York  in  1665,  New  Jersey  in  1676,  Maryland  in  1692,  Penn- 
sylvania in  1705,  North  Carolina  in  1715. 


RECORD  OF  OWNERSHIP.  119 

in  desks,  etc.,  until  Ms  death.  After  this  event 
the  deeds  found  among  his  effects  are  gathered 
together  and  "thrown"  into  a  vault,  secure  at 
least  but  no  doubt  with  some  missing,  and  in- 
deed in  poor  condition  for  use  in  proving1  rec- 
ord  or  showing  a  succession  of  ownership  by 
reason  of  their  not  being  properly  indexed  and 
arranged.  These  vaults  are  known  as  the  "no- 
tarial archives"  and  are  the  repositories  of 
original  deeds  of  transfer. 

The  final  preservation  of  the  originals  is  per- 
haps to  be  commended,  were  they  arranged 
and  indexed  suitable  for  reference.  But  their 
being  allowed  to  remain  so  long  in  the  office  of 
the  notary,  insecurely  preserved,  is  to  be  de- 
plored, especially  since  the  public  record  of  the 
transaction  is  not  complete. 

The  office  of  the  recorder  is  the  safe  reposi- 
tory of  all  instruments  affecting  ones  interest 
in  land  or  any  real  property. 

If  one  has  loaned  another  a  sum  of  money 
and  taken  in  evidence  a  writing,  the  party  fur- 
nishing the  money  should  protect  himself  by 
having  recorded  the  instrument  reciting  the 
loan  and  describing  the  property  pledged,  which 
instrument  is  known  as  the  mortgage.  The  re- 
cording of  this  paper  declares  to  the  public  the 
transaction  and  the  borrower  cannot  then 
transfer  or  sell  his  property  and  thus  elude  the 
debt. 


120        LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

And  when  the  borrower  or  owner  of  the  prop- 
erty has  repaid  the  debt  and  received  a  state- 
ment that  the  lien  of  the  mortgage  is  released 
as  to  his  property,  he  should  at  once  have  this 
copied  in  one  of  the  public  records  in  order  to 
preserve  the  evidence  of  payment.  For  with 
the  utmost  care  the  original  papers  are  liable  to 
get  misplaced  or  destroyed,  and  time  and  money 
are  required  to  secure  duplicate  copies. 

The  actual  labor  of  preserving  the  records 
of  all  transactions  among  men  in  their  life  time 
is  accomplished  in  main  as  outlined  above ;  but 
when  a  man  dies  his  property  is  transferred  to 
his  heirs  through  the  assistance  of  the  office  of 
the  Probate  court  and  not  directly  by  the  re- 
corder. 

If  the  deceased  left  a  will,  his  will  is  proven 
in  this  court  and  when  so  made  public,  it  shows 
to  whom  his  estate  is  divided.  If  no  will  is 
found  this  court  determines  who  are  the  heirs 
and  they  then  share  the  estate.  Thus  then  are 
the  records  of  the  various  transactions  affect- 
ing a  title  to  a  property  preserved  in  order  that 
at  any  time  an  owner  may  exhibit  his  rights. 

In  England  however    the    records    of    land 

transfers  are  not  kept  as  in  this  country,  and  a 

person  about  to  sell  a  parcel  of  land 

English         would    have    his    solicitor    prepare 

"rovin1  °f     ^rom  ^ne  original  instruments  an  ab- 

titie.  stract  of  all  matters  upon  which  the 

seller  intended  to  prove  his  title,  in- 


RECORD  OF  OWNERSHIP.  121 

eluding  deeds,  wills,  registers  of  births,  deaths, 
and  mortgages,  pedigrees,  etc.,  whether  of  rec- 
ord or  not,  which  in  any  way  show  ownership. 
Every  state  has  its  system  of  registration  of 
conveyances  and  the  general  rules  of  construc- 
tive notice  are  the  same  in  all  States ;  out  of  this 
system  of  recording  conveyances  and  the  doc- 
trine of  constructive  notice  has  grown  the  mod- 
ern American  business  or  profession  of  ab- 
stracting land  titles,  as  explained  in  the  next 
succeeding  chapter.  Also  the  guaranty  certifi- 
cate and  policy  of  title  insurance  is  founded  on 
these  principles  of  recording  the  various  trans- 
fers of  ownership  and  the  tracing  of  ownership 
and  right  of  possession  to  the  present  owner. 

SUGGESTION. — Visit  the  office  of  your  re- 
corder and  ask  to  see  the  public  records  of 
deeds,  mortgages,  releases,  etc. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

THE  ABSTRACT  OF  TITLE  DEFINED. 

An  abstract  of  Title  is  a  condensed  history 
of  the  title  to  land,  giving  the  material  portions 
of  all  instruments  or  records  pertinent  to  the 
title  of  the  land  in  question. 

These  instruments  are  more  particularly 
deeds,  mortgages,  trust  deeds,  tax  assessments, 
judgments,  liens,  rights  of  conservators  for  in- 
sane persons  and  minors  or  profligates,  of  wid- 
ows, parties  to  suits,  etc. 

An  abstract  should  show  every  possible  fact 
which  in  any  way  may  become  a  cloud  on  the 
title  or  which  tends  to  exhibit  the 
The  unclouded  ownership   of  the  tract 

oJ?*^ ement  of  land  under  consideration.  The 
abstract.  matters  should  be  prepared  and  ar- 
ranged in  a  methodical  and  accur- 
ate manner,  only  by  those  who  are  experts  in 
such  matters  and  who  are  familiar  with  the  pub- 
lic records  and  well  versed  in  real  estate  law. 

The  term  abstract  of  title  does  not  necessar- 
ily mean  a  condensed  copy,  but  it  implies  a 
work  requiring  learning,  skill  and  labor. 
(Banker  v.  Caldwell,  3  Minn.  94.) 

(122) 


THE  ABSTRACT  OF  TITLE  DEFINED.         123 

Persons  engaged  in  the  business  of  making 
abstracts  of  title  occupy  a  relation  of  confidence 
towards  those  employing  them,  second  only  in 
the  sacredness  of  its  nature  to  that  between  an 
attorney  and  his  client.  The  abstracter  of  titles 
is  indeed  something  more  than  a  mere  business 
man.  He  is  not  the  servant  of  the  moment,  he 
builds  not  for  the  present  alone  but  for  the  fu- 
ture as  well.  His  work  well  done  will  endure. 
By  such  service  and  showing,  a  purchaser  or  an 
owner  may  know  the  condition  of  any  title  un- 
der investigation. 

The  term  abstracter  or  abstracter  of  title  is 
of  recent  coinage  and  use,  designed  to  describe 
one  who  prepares,  from  the  public  records,  a 
history  of  the  transfers  and  other  matters,  af- 
fecting a  title  to  a  property.  The  work  of  the 
American  abstracter  has  been  developed  almost 
entirely  within  the  past  fifty  years. 
The  Early  laborers  in  this  field  styled 

and^the61"  themselves  conveyancers;  later,  ab- 
examiner.  stract  makers  which  has  been  con- 
tracted into  abstracters.  Examiner 
is  also  a  term  used  though  more  commonly  ap- 
plied to  an  attorney  who  examines  the  abstract 
after  it  has  been  prepared  by  the  abstracter, 
in  order  to  determine  if  the  steps  taken  in  pass- 
ing the  title  from  one  owner  to  another  were 
legal  or  according  to  the  prescribed  statute, 
and  to  determine  the  condition  of  the  title. 


124        LAND  SUBVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

As  districts  grow  older  in  their  settlement 
land  is  transferred  from  one  individual  to 
another  more  frequently,  and  deeds,  mortgages, 
etc.,  accumulate  until  it  is  no  longer  practical 
to  examine  the  thread  or  chain  of  title  by  read- 
ing them  in  the  original  instrument;  as  stated 
in  the  previous  chapter  this  condition  gave  rise 
to  the  need  of  public  records.  Nor  is  it  practi- 
cal or  possible  to  laboriously  follow  the  title 
through  so  many  volumes  of  records;  and  this 
increasing  mass  of  records  created  a  demand 
for  their  scientific  indexing  and  the  exhibit  of 
the  essentials  of  every  instrument  or  transfer 
contained  therein  affecting  the  title  under  con- 
sideration. 

The  Supreme  Court  of  Illinois  has  defined  an 
abstract  as  "a  summary  of  the  facts  relied  on 
as  evidence  of  title.  It  should  contain  a  note 
of  all  conveyances,  transfers  or  other  facts  re- 
lied on  as  evidence  of  the  claimant's  title,  to- 
gether with  all  such  facts  appearing  of  record 
as  may  impair  it."  (Sec.  HI.  Rep.  Vol.  117, 
page  149.) 

By  some  the  abstract  is  often 
™ea^stract  confused  with  a  title  itself.  Yet  a 
distinguished  careful  study  of  the  definition 
quoted  above  will  disclose  that  the 
right  of  ownership  is  the  title  while  the  history 
or  examination  of  the  records  is  the  abstract 
and  shows  the  condition  of  the  title. 


THE  ABSTRACT  OF  TITLE  DEFINED.         125 

A  merchantable  abstract  is  one  which,  has 
been  prepared  by  a  competent  abstracter,  an 
abstractor  who  by  his  years  of  experience  and 
painstaking  has  proved  his  competency.  Abil- 
ity, reliability,  and  responsibility  are  the  three 
characteristics  which  go  to  determine  the  mer- 
chantability of  abstracts;  lacking  any  one  of 
these  essentials  the  work  of  any  abstracter  of 
titles  is  bound  to  prove  a  failure. 

The  terms  good  and  bad  may  be  applied  to 
the  abstract  as  it  describes  the  work  of  the  ab- 
stracter but  neat  and  complete  would  be  bet- 
ter terms;  as  applied  to  titles  these  terms  will 
be  discussed  in  a  subsequent  chapter  on  the 
title. 

It  must  also  be  understood  that  the  abstract 
is  not  in  itself  a  guaranty  of  the  title.  Do  not 
be  so  deceived.  It  is  merely  the  exhibit  of  the 
records  showing  the  condition  of  the  title.  Af- 
ter an  abstract  is  secured  have  some  good  at- 
torney examine  it  to  determine  the  condition 
of  your  title. 

The  methods  of  preparing  an  abstract  vary 
in  every  locality  since  in  the  older  settled  coun- 
tries, where  real  estate  values  are  high  larger 
and  more  complete  showings  are  required.  In  a 
newly  settled  country  where  transfers  are  few 
the  abstract  is  little  more  than  a  mere  index, 
while  in  the  early  settled  regions  they  contain 
all  the  essential  points  of  every  transfer  so  that 


126        LAND  SUBVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

the  condition  of  a  title  may  be  determine!  by 
a  study  of  the  abstract  alone  and  no  reference 
to  the  records  themselves  is  required. 

English  Abstracts  of  Title  are  in  a  large  part 
prepared  from  the  original  unre- 
Engiishand  corded  instruments  of  transfers  and 
abstract?  family  histories  or  pedigrees,  and 
compared,  they  show  only  the  interest  of  some 
one  individual  in  the  property. 
American  abstracts  are  prepared  from  the  pub- 
lic records  of  all  original  instruments  of  trans- 
fer, condensed  and  arranged  in  chronological 
order,  so  that  they  show  every  item  connected 
with  or  affecting  the  title  abstracted  and  they 
disclose  the  entire  ownership  of  the  property. 

An  abstracter  must  use  due  care  and  dili- 
gence in  the  examination  of  the  records,  and  he 
cannot  rely  on  mere  indexes ;  he  should  make  a 
full  and  true  search  of  all  the  records  and  close 
his  work  by  an  explicit  statement  or  certificate 
that  * '  all  matters  affecting  the  title  are  shown. ' ' 

A  perfect  and  complete  abstract  of  title  can 
be  prepared  only  by  the  aid  of  properly  con- 
structed indices,  and  the  meagre  facilities  main- 
tained by  the  public  offices  are  wholly  inade- 
quate and  abstracts  made  by  public  officials,  and 
from  such  sources  only,  are  not  to  be  relied 
upon. 

The  general  rule  is  that  in  the  absence  of 
fraud  an  abstracter  is  liable  for  error  or  omis- 


THE  ABSTRACT  OF  TITLE  DEFINED.         127 

sion  to  the  party  only  who  employs  him,  and 
not  to  any  subsequent  owner  or  any  other  per- 
son interested  in  the  title. 

In  every  instance,  however,  an  abstract  com- 
pany should  make  good  any  loss  occasioned  by 
failure  of  showings  in  its  abstracts  of  title,  and 
most  companies  do;  and  the  statute  of  each 
state  should  require  it  to  do  so. 

The  furnishing  of  an  abstract  of  title  by  the 

seller  cannot  be  demanded  by  the  purchaser  as 

a  legal  right,  but  it  is  usually  made 

when  shall      a  condition  in  most   sales  by  ex- 

3.ri  Abstrsct 

be  furnished,  press  agreement  in  the  contract  be- 
tween the  parties;  but  if  the  con- 
tract makes  no  mention  of  an  abstract,  the  pur- 
chaser cannot  later  demand  one.  When,  how- 
ever, a  contract  provides  for  the  exhibit  of  an 
abstract  of  title  by  a  day  named,  this  must  be 
furnished  before  the  vendor  can  demand  per- 
formance of  an  agreement  by  the  vendee;  and 
if  the  abstract  does  not  show  the  title  agreed 
upon  at  the  day  set  for  the  completion  of  the 
contract,  the  purchaser  may  elect  to  declare  the 
contract  void. 

When  a  sale  of  land  is  complete  and  the  deed 
has  been  delivered,  the  abstract  becomes  the 
property  of  the  purchaser,  and  as  well,  when 
the  owner  of  land  delivers  his  abstract  in  pro- 
curing a  loan  it  becomes  a  part  of  the  security 
for  the  loan  and  may  not  be  demanded  by  the 


128        LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

mortgagor,  his  heirs  or  assigns  until  the  loan 
is  fully  paid. 

Abstracts  of  title  to  land  are  subjects  of  lit- 
erary property,  so  long  as  the  compiler  remains 
owner  of  the  unpublished  manuscript,  and  may 
be  entered  for  copyright. 

Where  lands  are  incorporated  into  a  new 
county  by  a  change  of  lines,  original  instru- 
ments need  not  be  re-recorded  in  the  new  county, 
but  the  abstract  must  show  all  matters  relating 
to  the  title.  And  where  a  party  accepts  a  title 
from  another  person  engaged  in  litigation,  he 
will  be  bound  by  the  decree  rendered  in  the  suit. 
If  judgment  is  rendered  against  his  grantor, 
his  land  just  purchased  will  be  liable  for  the 
payment  of  the  judgment,  until  it  is  settled. 

In  the  event  of  the  destruction  of  the  county 
records  and  of  the  original  instru- 
HOW  when  ments  of  transfer  as  well,  an  ab- 
raords  are  stra<;t  of  titie  prepared  in  the  regu- 
destroyed.  lar  course  of  trade  and  for  the  bene- 
fit of  the  parties  interested  in  the 
land,  is  evidence  of  title  and  can  be  recorded  to 
prove  ownership,  but  it  must  be  intelligible  to 
any  one,  and  where  there  are  abbreviations 
needing  proof  to  explain,  the  abstract  of  title 
may  not  prevail,  except  by  a  special  statute. 

A  conveyance  is  not  invalid  because  the  de- 
scriptions are  in  figures  or  well  understood  ab- 
breviations, but  abbreviations  should  not  be 


THE  ABSTRACT  OF  TITLE  DEFINED.       129 

used  in  an  abstract  to  such  an  extent  that  the 
same  is  rendered  unintelligible,  and  when  they 
are  so  employed  the  abstract  is  insufficient  to 
establish  title.  Abbreviations  so  far  as  possi- 
ble should  be  avoided  altogether. 

SUGGESTION. — Visit  an  abstract  office  and  ex- 
amine the  equipment.  Ask  to  see  the  indexes, 
records,  plats,  etc.  The  abstracter  is  your 
friend  and  will  be  glad  to  see  you. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 


NEED  OF  AN  ABSTEACT. 

The  most  indestructible  and  enduring  form 
of  wealth  is  the  ownership  of  real  estate. 
Wealth  in  personal  property  is  liable  to  loss. 
Merchandise  soon  becomes  unseasonable,  and 
is  liable  to  be  destroyed  by  fire,  water  or  other 
agencies.  Even  the  house  in  which  we  live  may 
be  swept  away  by  fire,  flood,  wind  or 
earthquake.  Precious  stones,  bonds 
valuable  and  other  valuables  may  be  stolen 
weaHh°  °r  l°st  but  if  the  wealth  is  in  lands 
and  the  title  is  good,  the  enjoyment 
of  ones  investments  cannot  be  denied,  stolen, 
lost  or  destroyed.  It  will  abide  till  death  and 
then  inure  to  the  benefit  of  the  next  genera- 
tion; nor  does  the  wealth  of  land  decrease  but 
on  the  contrary;  it  grows  larger  as  time  goes 
on. 

Every  one  then  will  do  well  to  make  some  in- 
vestment in  real  estate,  indestructible  and  sure, 
and  if  he  is  careful  at  time  of  purchase  that  the 
title  is  good,  he  need  have  no  fear  of  fire,  thief 
or  panic,  for  it  will  stand  until  time  is  no 
more. 

(130) 


NEED  OF  AN  ABSTRACT.  131 

When  a  man  buys  a  home,  his  first  thought  is 
that  the  house  and  barn  must  be  insured,  yet 
these  are  but  a  small  part  of  the  value  of  the 
whole  farm  or  home.  And  insurance  against 
fire  or  cyclone  is  but  a  small  part  of  the  risk  to 
protect.  An  owner  willingly  pays  twenty-five 
dollars  to  be  protected  against  the  loss  of  a 
couple  thousand  of  dollars  in  buildings  and  per- 
haps forgets  that  unless  he  has  an  abstract  he 
has  no  insurance  whatever  against  the  many 
thousand  dollars  invested  in  the  land  itself.  It 
is  of  more  importance  to  know  you  are  pro- 
tected in  the  ownership  of  the  land  than  that 
you  are  secured  against  partial  loss  of  the  im- 
provements. 

Again  the  owner  is  especially  careful  to  know 
that  his  insurance  policy  is  written  by 

When  to   a   reliable,   long    established    and    re- 

get  an  .,  ,  ,.,     , 

abstract    sponsible  company  —  while  he  may  ac- 


and  the    cep^  an  abstract  that  is  worthless;  an 

value  of         ^  . 

one.          abstract  compiled  by  an  incompetent, 

unreliable  attorney  or  squire,  one  that 
has  been  put  up  "cheap."  A  purchaser  of  real 
estate  should  be  so  careful  to  have  a  merchant- 
able abstract  that  if  necessary  he  would  pay 
for  it  himself,  because  when  he  pays  his  good 
money  for  a  property  he  wants  to  be  assured 
he  is  not  buying  a  lawsuit  or  only  a  small  share 
in  the  lands. 

The  previous  chapter  explained  the  abstract 
and  its  method  of  preparation  and  any  one  deal- 


132        LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

ing  in  land  should  know  that  a  good  and  com- 
plete abstract  can  only  be  prepared  by  a  skill- 
ed laborer  and  not  by  one  who  makes  abstract- 
ing but  an  incident  to  his  other  work.  And 
the  abstract  work  should  be  backed  by  the  most 
reliable  company  or  firm  accessible.  An  ab- 
stract is  a  guide  and  the  only  safe  guide  to  pur- 
chasers of  land  or  investors  in  real  estate  se- 
curities. 

The  title  to  all  real  estate  is  involved  in  the 
numerous  public  records  or  documents,  instru- 
ments and  decrees,  as  they  are  kept  in  the  sev- 
eral public  offices  and  there  is  no  one  instru- 
ment in  the  title  of  sufficient  importance  in  it- 
self to  render  unnecessary  an  examination  of 
all  of  the  records  for  the  purpose  of  ascertain- 
ing the  true  state  of  the  title  as  it  exists. 

Many  people  believe  and  some  often  insist 
that  a  warranty  deed  is  all  sufficient 


A  warranty  an(j  ^i  <jiear  g^y  defect,  or  that  a 

deed  alone 

can  never     deed  from  an  officer  of  the  court  will 

SSe6good.  make  the  title  good.  Such  belief  is 
founded  on  ignorance  and  purchas- 
ers often  discover  this  when  they  have  had  to 
expend  large  sums  of  money  to  protect  their 
property,  when  a  proper  abstract  in  the  first 
place,  carefully  examined  by  a  competent  attor- 
ney would  have  avoided  all  troubles. 

It  is  a  fact  of  law  that  the  purchaser  of  real 
estate  is  expected  to  know  the  condition  of  the 


NEED  OF  AN  ABSTRACT.  133 

title  he  is  getting.  If,  afterwards,  he  has  to 
pay  penalties  on  account  of  defects  or  liens,  he 
cannot  plead  ignorance  or  say  he  relied  on  the 
reputation  of  his  grantor  and  understood  his 
title  was  perfect.  He  must  know  what  the  rec- 
ords show  concerning  all  the  matters  affecting 
his  title  when  the  purchase  is  made. 

The  knowledge  of  the  condition  of  a  title  ac- 
quired before  purchase,  often  saves  thousands 
of  dollars  that  might  have  to  be  ex- 
P611^6^  in  Payin£  claims  overlooked 
forearmed.  in  a  casual  examination  of  the  rec- 
ords; besides  this  great  saving,  the 
general  use  of  abstracts  of  title  tends  to  estab- 
lish greater  security  in  ownership  of  lands  and 
to  increase  the  value  of  real  estate.  An  ab- 
stract is  important,  not  only  on  account  of  the 
fund  of  information  it  contains,  but  also  be- 
cause that  information  is  in  such  form  and  so 
arranged  that  it  may  be  used  with  ease. 

The  making  of  an  abstract  of  title  and  the  ex- 
amination of  it  are  separate  and  distinct  duties. 
The  abstracter  searches  the  records  and  pre- 
pares the  facts  upon  which  the  examiner  bases 
his  opinion,  and  having  these  facts  before  him, 
an  examiner  can  give  his  undivided  attention 
to  the  legal  conditions  without  being  inter- 
rupted to  search  for  the  facts  upon  which  his 
conclusions  are  based.  Therefore,  after  pro- 
curing your  abstract,  take  it  to  an  attorney  for 


134        LAND  SUBVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

examination,  and  be  sure  he  knows  the  law  of 
the  land  where  the  property  is  located  and  that 
he  is  competent  to  make  the  examination  re- 
quired and  to  render  an  opinion  on  the  title. 

Here  are  a  few  of  the  many  reasons  why 
your  title  may  be  defective,  if  not  absolutely 
void. 

1.  Your  deed  may  have  the  property  wrong- 
ly described;  a  number  of  the  con- 
A  few  veyances  prior  to  your  deed  may 

reasons  * 

whereby  a  have  the  same  defect, 
^defective.  2.  The  deed  may  be  executed  by 
an  attorney-in-fact,  his  power  of  at- 
torney may  be  imperfect,  his  principal  may 
have  deceased  or  married,  before  the  execution 
of  his  deed.  In  the  first  event  his  deed  was 
void  while  in  the  second,  not  all  the  title  was 
conveyed. 

3.  Your  title  may  depend  on  the  foreclosure 
of  a  mortgage  and  it  is  incumbent  upon  you  to 
know  that  the  foreclosure  proceedings  were  reg- 
ular, and  that  all  parties  interested  were  made 
parties  to  the  suit,  and  that  the  service  was 
complete  against  all  defendants.    A  decree,  and 
it  follows  a  sheriff's  or  master's  deed  based  on 
defective  service,  is  void. 

4.  Your  title  may  be  derived  by  will;  the 
will  may  be  defective ;  there  may  be  a  life  estate 
not  disposed  of,  legacies  that  are  unpaid  or  a 


NEED  OF  A.N  ABSTBACT.  135 

score  of  other  things  which  would  make  a  title 

defective,  if  not  absolutely  void. 

While  an  abstract  does  not  insure  the  title,  it 

is  however  of  much  more  importance 

An  abstract    than  insurance  as  commonly  used. 

toae™«X     Abstracts  of  title  do  not  speculate 

only  and       on  the  uncertainties  of  the  future; 

ftseif  make*   tiie^  deal  ^^  ^e  ^errin    realities 


a  title  good,    of  present  existing  conditions.     By 
their  use  one  may  avoid  future  trou- 
ble in  learning  the  facts  as  they  are  before 
purchasing  a  property. 

An  abstract  of  title  being  of  more  importance 
than  insurance,  the  man  who  is  without  an  ab- 
stract has  less  business  judgment  than  he  who 
has  no  insurance  on  his  personal  property. 

SUGGESTION.  —  Visit  your  abstract  office 
and  ask  to  see  an  abstract  of  title.  Get  the  ab- 
stracter  to  explain  it  to  you.  He  will  be  glad 
to  meet  you  and  tell  you  about  titles. 


CHAPTER  XV. 

THE  ABSTRACT  AND  THE  ABSTBACTER. 

The  next  chapter  illustrates  the  abstract  and 
it  is  intended  to  acquaint  the  reader  with  the 
simpler  steps  of  exhibiting  the  condition  of  a 
title.  By  a  study  of  the  several  succeeding 
numbered  paragraphs,  in  their  regular  order, 
on  the  following  pages,  the  reader  will  be  able 
to  trace  the  title  of  a  town  lot  from  its  first 
transfer  by  the  United  States  Government  to 
the  present  owner. 

There  are  numerous  forms  and  different  ar- 
rangements employed  in  the  compiling  of  ab- 
stracts of  title  each  individual  abstracter  being 
partial  to  his  own  style.  But  all  aim  at  the 
same  fact,  that  of  setting  out  the  history  of  the 
several  conveyances  of  the  title  as  disclosed  by 
the  record,  whether  the  transfers  were  accom- 
plished by  deeds  of  an  individual  or  by  opera- 
tion of  the  law. 

In  the  newer  sections  of  the  country  the  show- 
ings in  an  abstract  are  usually  brief, 
why  some  since  the  titles,  being  young,  are  not 
are SSier  ^  complicated.  Under  these  oon- 
than  others,  ditions  the  whole  exhibit  is  often 
very  meager,  the  entire  abstract 

(136) 


THE  ABSTRACT  AND  THE  ABSTRACTED    137 

comprising  but  a  single  sheet  and  in  fact  con- 
sisting of  little  more  than  a  good  index. 

Where  this  sheet  form  or  meager  index  meth- 
od is  employed,  it  is  necessary  for  the  examiner 
to  take  the  "abstract"  as  given  him,  and  go 
to  the  records  themselves  in  order  to  properly 
pass  upon  the  validity  of  the  title.  But  where 
an  abstract  maker  has  progressed  and  when  he 
is  willing  and  competent  to  make  the  exhibits 
and  showings  as  complete  as  he  should,  the  at- 
torney may  well  form  his  opinion  of  the  condi- 
tion of  the  title  under  consideration  from  a 
study  of  the  abstract  alone. 

As  the  reader  studies  the  pages  of  the  next 
chapter  and  observes  the  explanatory  notes,  be- 
low the  several  transfers,  he  will  readily  under- 
stand the  transfer  of  the  title  under  considera- 
tion there,  and  realize  as  not  before  what  is  a 
history  of  a  title,  in  other  words  an  abstract, 
and  more  fully  appreciate  the  absolute  need  of 
one. 

It  is  to  be  accepted  that  the  exhibit  on  the 
following  pages  is  not  set  out  as  a  model  ab- 
stract for  an  abstractor  to  follow  but  more  as 
a  guide  to  acquaint  the  reader  with  what  an 
abstract  of  title  purports  to  show.  It  is  also  to 
be  noted  that  the  errors  appearing,  while  theo- 
retical, are  in  fact  just  such  as  are  often  found 
in  our  public  records.  The  errors  are  explain- 
ed in  the  foot  notes,  but  the  notes  are  no  part 


138        LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

of  the  abstract-,  they  partake  more  of  the  na- 
ture of  an  attorney's  opinion  on  the  title  by  his 
examination  of  the  abstract. 

Let  it  also  be  understood  and  oft  repeated, 
"  There  is  no  way  to  exhibit  the  re- 
A  paragraph  corded  condition  of  a  title  and  to 
should*18  discover  errors  of  omission  or  corn- 
know,  mission  except  by  means  of  an  ab- 
stract. ' ' 

An  owner  may  feel  his  title  is  good  because 
he  knows  all  who  have  owned  the  property  since 
it  was  alienated  from  the  Government,  but  he 
cannot  know  if  all  conveyances  are  regular  and 
properly  recorded.  If  no  abstract  is  at  hand 
such  assurance  is  mere  presumption  and  guess 
work,  and  deferring  the  correction  of  errors  is 
expensive  to  say  the  least.  An  error  discov- 
ered to-day  may  be  cured  by  affidavit  or  quit 
claim  deed  to-morrow,  but  if  neglected  perhaps 
the  only  parties  who  could  have  adjusted  it  die, 
and  then  the  sole  recourse  is  a  costly  suit  at  law 
to  quiet  title.  By  not  having  a  title  in  good 
condition  sales  are  retarded  and  often  de- 
feated; loans  are  delayed  and  frequently  re- 
fused. 

Never  accept  a  property  without  first  having 
been  furnished  a  complete  abstract  and  having 
had  it  examined  by  a  competent  at- 
There  are  tomey.  Too  great  stress  cannot  be 
£w3?a?  P^  on  the  necessary  skill  of  the  ab- 
abstracts.  stracter,  the  required  fitness  of  the 


THE  ABSTRACT  AND  THE  ABSTBACTEB.    139 

attorney  and  on  the  responsibility  of  both.  If 
either  fails  to  note  an  error  whereby  a  loss 
occurs  he  should  be  willing  and  able  to  make 
good  the  account.  Let  the  first  care  always  be, 
when  dealing  with  real  estate,  to  know  the  title 
is  regular  and  complete  from  the  alienation  by 
the  United  States  Government  down  to  the  pres- 
ent owner. 

The  closing  number  of  the  abstract,  the  certi- 
ficate, is  not  always  well  understood  or  appreci- 
ated. It  is  this  final  paragraph  that  causes  the 
worry  to  the  conscientious  abstracter.  It  re- 
quires less  skill  to  brief  the  conveyances  than 
to  select  the  required  showings  of  a  suit  in 
court.  But  in  the  certificate  the  whole  is  sum- 
med up  and  the  statement  made  that  all  is 
shown  and  shown  correctly. 

It  is  this  uncertainty  of  having  overlooked  a 
word  in  a  conveyance,  or  sometimes  the  omis- 
sion of  a  mere  comma  that  brings  the  weight  of 
years  to  men  engaged  in  abstract  work.  Per- 
haps the  mere  misplaced  punctuation  mark  has 
changed  the  effect  of  the  terms  of 
Reliability  conveyance  so  as  to  defeat  the  real 
abstracter.  intent  and  who  is  to  bear  the  blame? 
Why,  the  abstracter.  He  must  also 
search  all  conveyance  records,  court  records, 
tax  records,  judgment  records,  and  lien  records 
and  know  he  has  missed  no  entry  in  either  one 
that  affects  the  title  under  consideration. 


140        LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES, 

Aside  from  the  actual  labor  required,  it  is 
another  matter  to  make  the  statement  in  writ- 
ing that  matters  are  just  as  shown  and  sustain 
each  statement  with  one's  whole  responsibility, 
both  moral  and  financial.  Only  by  the  best  pre- 
pared and  most  carefully  kept  set  of  indexes 
can  an  abstracter  hope  to  maintain  his  ability 
to  make  the  complete  showings  required.  His 
labor  must  be  unceasing;  his  work  is  never 
ended. 

The  examiner  takes  the  abstract  after  it  is 
prepared  and  seeks  to  discover  if  the  transfers 
are  according  to  law  and  in  case  of  suits  to  see 
if  they  have  been  properly  conducted.  His 
work  is  less  arduous  because  all  matters  are 
arranged  in  regular  condensed  order,  and  he 
has  nothing  to  concern  him  except  the  matter 
directly  connected  with  the  title.  He  must  de- 
termine the  legal  conditions  and  he 
The  should  be  skilled  in  the  law  of  real 

and^ST  property  especially  of  the  state  in 
work.  which  the  land  in  question  is  located. 

His  work  though  less  extensive  is 
equally  as  important  as  that  of  the  abstracter 
but  the  two  should  never  be  combined.1 

1.  Perhaps  the  most  notorious  case  of  modern  times, 
illustrating  the  value  of  a  reliable  abstract  and  show- 
ing the  result  of  relying  on  an  abstract  of  title  prepared 
by  incompetent  workmen  having  incomplete  equipment,  is 
the  case  of  John  F.  Dietz  from  Cameron  Dam,  Wiscon- 


THE  ABSTRACT  AND  THE  ABSTEACTEE.    141 

sin.  It  is  also  a  lamentable  fact  that  Mr.  Dietz  is  now 
serving  a  life  term  in  the  Wisconsin  state's  prison  as  a 
result  of  his  confidence  and  reliance  in  the  poorly  pre- 
pared abstract  of  title  to  his  farm.  This  story  is  the  last 
argument  against  unreliable  abstractors  and  abstract  equip- 
ment, and  is  the  only  recommendation  that  should  be 
needed  to  interest  all  land  owners  in  the  title  insurance 
as  mentioned  in  chapter  twenty-eight  at  a  subsequent  page 
herein. 

The  story  briefly  related  is  as  follows:  One  R.  T.,  on 
October  3,  1900,  prepared  an  abstract  of  title  to  the  south 
half  of  the  northwest  quarter  and  the  north  half  of  the 
southwest  quarter  of  section  20,  township  38  north,  range 
4,  west  of  the  fourth  P.  M.  in  Chippewa  County,  Wiscon- 
sin, which  apparently  showed  an  indefeasible  title  in  fee 
simple  in  H.  E.  Dietz,  wife  of  John  F.  Dietz.  A  correct 
abstract  later  prepared  disclosed  an  easement  or  privilege 
in  favor  of  the  Chippewa  River  Improvement  and  Log 
Driving  Company,  giving  them  the  right  to  construct  a 
dam  across  Thornapple  River,  in  a  part  of  said  section, 
the  construction  and  operation  of  which  would,  and  did, 
flood  the  land  claimed  by  Dietz.  This  deed  of  rights  was 
executed  in  1884  and  all  conveyances  of  the  Dietz  prop- 
erty made  subsequent  to  this  date  were  perforce  subject 
to  the  rights  and  privileges  of  the  said  company.  These 
rights  and  reservations  were  not  shown  in  the  Dietz  ab- 
stract, the  conveyance  of  the  privilege  itself  being  omitted 
and  the  reservations  in  the  subsequent  deeds  being  either 
overlooked  or  not  mentioned. 

Dietz,  relying  on  the  showing  made  to  him,  acted  as  he 
thought  in  the  defense  of  his  property  rights,  though  his 
method  of  defense  by  siege  and  shotgun  is  not  commended. 
Yet  had  he  been  furnished  a  correct,  complete  and  reliable 
abstract  at  the  time  of  purchase,  he  would  never  have  been 
drawn  into  that  terrible  warfare. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

A  SAMPLE  ABSTEACT  OP  TITLE. 

No.  1.  Caption.1 

An  Abstract  of  the  Proceeding  of  Record  in, 
Douglas  County,  Illinois,  upon  Lot  Number 
Ten  (10)  in  Block  Number  Four  (4)  of  the 
Original  Town  of  Barbourville,  Illinois,  from 
and  since  the  date  of  Entry.  Said  lot  being  a 
part  of  the  SW%-NE^4  Sec.  34  Tp.  16  N.  R.  8 
E.  3rd.  P.  M. 

1.  The  caption  of  an  abstract  is  that  opening  or  in- 
troductory paragraph,  which  explains  concisely  what  prop- 
erty is  under  consideration  and  when  the  examination  be- 
gins. If  examination  begins  at  a  date  subsequent  to 
alienation  by  the  United  States  Government  it  is  usual 
to  state  that  "title  is  assumed  in  A.  B.,"  the  pretended 
owner. 

This  practice  is  not  to  be  commended  because  a  man 
may  be  understood  to  have  title  and  yet  there  might  be 
serious  defects  prior  to  his  ownership.  Always  require 
an  abstract  to  begin  with  the  Government  as  a  source  of 
title. 

(142) 


A  SAMPLE  ABSTRACT.  143 


THE  UNITED  STATES  OF  —  , 

AMERICA2  Entry  Book  *' 

/2\                f  ^Instrument — Entry. 

A.J.WOHM.N.  J  D-te,  April  1,  1837. 


CONVEYS : 

The  NEi,4  of  Section  34,  Township  16,  North, 
Range  8  E.  3d  P.  M.  as  shown  by  the  Land 
book  in  the  Recorder's  office  of  Douglas 
County,  Illinois. 


2.  This  number  two  is  the  first  contract  for  the  indi- 
vidual ownership  of  the  property  and  may  be  initiated  from 
many  sources  as  noted  in  the  succeeding  chapter  on  "The 
Title."  After  an  entry  man  or  his  assignee  has  proved 
up  on  his  claim  the  Government  issues  a  deed  to  the 
legal  holder  (owner)  of  the  land,  and  this  government 
deed  is  known  as  a  land  patent.  It  is  executed  for  the 
Government  of  the  United  States  of  America  by  the  Pres- 
ident and  countersigned  by  the  commissioner  of  the  gen- 
eral land  office. 


144        LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 


THE  UNITED  STATES  OP  AM- 
ERICA, MARTIN  VAN  BUR- 
EN,  President 

(3)  to 

ALOYSIUS  J.  WORMAN.  * 


Trans.  Deed1  Vol.  10,  page 
37. 

Instrument — Patent. 

Dated  April  22,  1840. 

Recorded,  May  16,  1906. 

Consideration — the  grantee 
being  legal  holder  of  certi- 
ficate No.  41216. 


CONVEYS  : 

The  NE%,  Sec.  34-16-8  E.  3d  P.  M.  and  other 
land,  in  Douglas  County,  Illinois. 


3.  In  this  number  it  is  shown    recorded    in    a    tran- 
scribed record.    Often  a  county  is   formed   from  territory 
formerly  in  one  or  more  older  counties.     All  former  rec- 
ords and  instruments  affecting  the  title  to  the  land  in 
the  newly  organized  county  are  copied  into  the  records 
of  the  new  county  and  these  copied  or  transcribed  records 
are  accepted  as  evidences  of  title  in  lieu  of  the  original 
record  in  the  older  district    Yet  if  there  is  a  discrepancy 
the  original  record  is  acknowledged  as  the  correct  one. 

4.  It  is  to  be  noted  that  A.  J.  Worman  was  the  entry- 
man,  Aloysius  J.  Worman,  the  patentee  and  A.  John  Wor- 
man, the  grantor  in  number  4.     These  may  be  the  same 
person  but  they  should  be  harmonized  by  an  affidavit  of 
some  one  who  knows  them  the  same. 


A  SAMPLE  ABSTRACT. 


145 


his 
A.  JOHN  X  WORMANS, 

mark 

Effingham,  Illinois 
(Witness  to  mark: 
C.  E.  BONNEB.) 
(4)  to 

SAMUEL  E.  HEOE 
Denver,  Colorado. 


Deed  Vol.  12,  page  95 
Instrument — Warranty  deed. 
Dated  Jan.  1,  1854. 
Recorded    May    1,    1854; 
Consideration — $1500.00 
Ack.    Roy    Church,    N,    P., 
Arapahoe  County,  Colorado 


CONVEYS  : 

The  SWi/4  of  the  NE^4  Sec.  34-16-8  E.,  Doug- 
las County,  Illinois. 


S.  ERVIN  HEGE  and 
MABEL  HEGE,  his  wife, 
Spokane,  Washington, 
(5)  to 

L.  S.  BOOTH, 
Seattle,  Washington. 


Deed  Vol.  14,  page  342. 
Instrument — Warranty  deed. 
Dated  Jan.  2,  1854. 
Recorded  Jan.  3,  1854; 
Consideration,  $2000.00. 
Ack.  A.  T.  Hastings,  N.  P. 
Garfield  County,  Washington 


CONVEYS  : 


The  Sy4  6  of  the  NB%  Sec.  34-16-8  E.  3d  P.  M., 
Douglas  County,  Illinois,  and  containing  40 
acres  more  or  less,  according  to  the  govern- 
ment survey  thereof. 

5.    At  number  four  no  wife  joins  with  the  grantor.   This 
will  make  no  difference  in  some  states  but  in  others  a 

10 


146        LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 


LAWRENCE  S.  BOOTH/ 
Seattle,  Washington, 
(6)  to 

SAMUEL  E.  HEGE, 
Spokane,  Washington. 


Mortgage  Vol.  15,  page  212. 

Instrument — Mortgage, 

Dated  Jan.  2, 1854. 

Recorded  Jan.  3,  1854. 

To  secure  $1000,  due  Jan.  3, 
1857,  with  int.  at  7%  an- 
nually, being  balance  of 
purchase7  money  due. 

Ack.  A.  T.  Hastings,  N.  P. 
Garfield  County  Wash. 


CONVEYS  : 

The  SWi/4-NEii   Sec.   34-16-8   E.  3d  P.  M.  in 
Douglas  County,  Illinois. 


wife  may  have  dower  or  homestead  interest  and  yet  in 
some,  she  will  have  an  inchoate  or  actual  interest  in  the 
fee.  It  must  be  established  that  he  is  a  bachelor  or  wid- 
ower, in  order  to  answer  this  question. 

Also,  in  number  four  the  description  is  faulty  in  that 
it  is  incomplete,  the  meridian  is  not  given.  But  this  may 
well  be  presumed  and  passed  owing  to  the  fact  it  is  stated 
the  land  lies  in  Douglas  County  and  all  ranges  in  this 
county  "East"  are  referred  to  the  third  principal  meridian. 

6.  The   description   in   number   five   is   faulty   by   the 
omission   of   one  word    "West."     This   deed   as   it   stands 
would  convey  but  one-half  of  the  tract  under  considera- 
tion and  there  is  no  way  to  determine  if  it  is  the  error 
in  the  original  deed  or  error  of  the  recorder.     (Names, 
see  4,  ante.) 

7.  The  mortgagor  by  name  other  than  last  grantee  is 
somewhat    harmonized    by    the    fact    that    this    mortgage 
states  it  is  given  for  part  of  the  purchase  price  and  by 
sequence  of  dates,  etc.  it  assists  to  show  intent  of  con- 
veyance in  number  four  but  the  mere  intent  cannot  cor- 
rect the  error  in  description.     Only  a  re-record  of  the  cor- 
rect original  or  the  recording  of  a  new  deed  can  correct 
the  error  in  above  desciption. 


A  SAMPLE  ABSTKACT.  147 


S.  E.  HEGE, 
Spokane,  Washington, 
(7)  to 

L.  S.  BOOTH. 


Release  Vol.  17,  page  263 
In  strumen  t — Release , 
^  Dated  Jan.  3,  1857. 
Recorded  Jan.  10,  1857 
Ack.  A.  T.  Hastings.N.P.Gar- 
field  County,  Washington 


CONVEYS : 

Releases  mortgage  recorded  in  Vol.  15,  page 
212  of  the  mortgage  records  of  Douglas 
County,  Illinois,  dated  Jan.  3,  1854,  to  se- 
cure $1000. 

L.  S.  BooTH,8  ^  Miscellaneous   Vol.   3,   page 

Seattle,  Washington,  406. 

(8)                to  >  Power  of  Attorney; 

CHARLES  E.  LAMBERT  Dated  May  6,  1860. 

Rockville,  Indiana.  J  Recorded  June  4,  1863. 

Grants  power  and  authority  to  said  second 
party  to  contract,  sell  and  convey  SW^-NE1^- 
34-16-8  E.  3d  P.  M.  in  Douglas  County,  Illinois, 
for  such  price  and  terms  as  he  may  deem  best 
and  to  execute  any  necessary  conveyance  to  con- 
vey interest  of  first  party.  Executed  under 
seal  and  ack.  by  A.  J.  Carmany,  Judge  of  the 
Superior  Court  of  Los  Angeles  Co.,  California. 

8.     Same  notation  as  in  footnote  5. 


148        LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 


LAWRENCE  S.  BOOTH  by 
CHARLES  E.  LAMBERT,  his 

attorney  in  fact' 
(9)  to 

TAYLOR  BROS., 
Newman,  Illinois. 


Deed  Volume  20,  page  577. 
Instrument — Warranty  deed, 
Dated  June  4,  1867. 
Recorded   July    12,    1869; 
Consideration,  $4500.00 
Ack.   W.   M.   Coval,  N.  P., 
Marion  County,   Indiana. 


CONVEYS : 

The  SW%  of  NE%  Sec.  34-16-8  E.  3d  P.  M. 
in  Douglas  County,  Illinois. 

Mortgage  Vol.  24  page  279. 
Instrument — Mortgage. 
Dated  April  5,  1870. 
Recorded  April  5,  1870. 
To  secure  $3000,  due  April  5, 

1875,  with  int.  at  5%  semi- 

annually 
Ack.  before  W.  H.  Fry,  N.P., 

Douglas  County,  Illinois. 


A.  A.  TAYLOR  and 
C.  O.  TAYLOR,  Bachelors, 
Newman,  Illinois,  (10) 
(10)  to 

A.  D.  LANQWORTHY, 
Chicago. 


CONVEYS  : 

SW^-NEi/2-34-16-8  E.  3d  P.  M.,  in  Douglas 
County,  Illinois. 

9.  Was  Lawrence  S.  Booth  living  June  4,  1867?    If  he 
had  died  prior  to  this  date  the  power  of  attorney  under 
which  this  deed  was  executed  had  been  cancelled  by  his 
death,  and  the  title  had  vested  in  his  heirs  or  devisees. 

10.  It  cannot  be  determined  from  the  showings  if  the 
grantors  in  number  ten  are  all  the  members  of  the  firm 
of  Taylor  Bros,  grantee  at  number  nine.    This  fact  must 
be  established.    The  grantees  at  number  nine  should  have 
been  set  out  separately.     An  affidavit  of  some  one  who 
knows  all  the  members  of  the   firm  of  Taylor  Bros,   is 
perhaps  the  only  evidence  available  in  explanation. 


A  SAMPLE  ABSTRACT.  149 

In  the  Circuit  Court  of  Douglas  County,  Illinois, 
At  the  October  Term,  A.  D.  1872.  In  the 
Matter  of 

A.  D.  LANGWORTHY 

(11)     vs. 

A.  A.  TAYLOR 

ANNIE  TAYLOR  ^Foreclosure." 

JOSEPH  TAYLOR  Case  No.  2475. 

MILDRED  TAYLOR 

and  FRANK  PAGE. 

Bill  sworn  to  filed  in  said  court  May  10,  1872, 
represents  that  A.  A.  Taylor  and  C.  0.  Taylor 
being  indebted  unto  complainant  in  the  sum  of 
$3000  did  on  April  5,  1870,  by  their  mortgage 
deed  of  that  date  convey  to  said  complainant 
the  SW-NE-34,  Tp.  16  N.  E.  8  E.  3d  P.  M.  That 
said  mortgage  provided  in  case  of  default  in 
payment  of  interest  when  due  or  for  nonpay- 
ment of  taxes,  said  debt  would  at  option  of  said 
mortgagee,  become  due  and  payable  and  said 

11.  This  showing  of  the  foreclosure  is  a  very  brief 
exhibit.  The  regular  procedure  is  to  abstract  the  bill, 
summons  and  service,  decree  to  sell,  report  of  sale,  con- 
firmation of  report  and  deed.  In  some  states  a  commis- 
sioner executes  the  orders  of  the  court  while  in  others 
it  is  the  master  in  chancery  and  in  a  few  the  sheriff. 

This  and  all  court  proceedings  must  be  carefully  con- 
ducted or  no  title  will  be  conveyed.  If  all  parties  inter- 
ested are  not  properly  notified  or  served  with  notice,  any 
decree  rendered  will  not  be  binding  as  to  those  without 
notice.  In  this  case,  the  examiner  knows  that  C.  O.  Taylor 
had  an  adopted  son,  C.  D.  Taylor,  who  was  not  so  served. 
Hence  it  will  be  necessary  to  secure  a  quit  claim  deed 
from  him  for  his  one-sixth  interest. 


150         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

mortgaged  premises  be  foreclosed  and  sold. 
And  whereas  the  interest  is  past  due  and  un- 
paid since  April  5,  1871,  and  said  complainant 
has  declared  said  mortgage  foreclosed  and  the 
whole  of  said  sum  due. 

It  is  also  represented  that  since  the  execution 
and  delivery  of  said  mortgage,  one  of  the  mort- 
gagors, towit,  C.  0.  Taylor,  has  departed  this 
life  intestate,  leaving  him  surviving,  his  widow, 
Annie  Taylor,  and  his  children,  Joseph  Taylor 
and  Mildred  Taylor.  That  said  children  are 
minors  and  have  no  legal  guardian  resident  in 
said  state.  That  the  estate  of  the  said  decedent 
has  not  been  administered.  That  Frank  K. 
Page  is  tenant  on  said  premises  whose  lease 
expires  June  1,  2000. 

Complainant  prays  that  an  account  may  be 
taken  under  direction  of  the  honorable  court  to 
determine  the  amount  due.  That  decree  may 
be  entered  ordering  said  defendants  to  pay 
such  amount  found  to  be  due  and  in  default 
thereof  that  said  mortgaged  premises  or  so 
much  as  may  be  necessary,  may  be  sold  under 
the  direction  of  this  court  to  satisfy  said  debt 
and  costs  of  this  proceedings.  That  summons 
may  issue  against  each  of  said  defendants. 

Summons  issued,  returned  and  in  files  shows 
service  regular  on  each  of  said  defendants.  W. 
Thomas  Coleman,  an  attorney  of  record  of  said 
court,  filed  answer  as  guardian  ad  litem,  for 
said  infant  defendants. 


A  SAMPLE  ABSTBACT.  151 

Decree  rendered  at  same  term  wherein  the 
court  finds  all  defendants  duly  served;  that 
matters  alleged  in  bill  are  true ;  cause  referred 
to  the  Master  who  has  filed  report,  and  his  re- 
port approved.  Court  finds  there  is  due  said 
complainant  $3516.20.  It  is  therefore  ordered 
and  decreed  that  said  defendants  or  some  one 
for  them  pay  said  sum  together  with  attorney's 
fee  and  costs  of  suit  within  twenty  days  from 
filing  of  this  decree  and  in  case  of  default  said 
mortgaged  premises  are  to  be  sold.  The  com- 
missioner of  said  court  shall  make  sale  at  pub- 
lic outcry  after  giving  notice  of  the  time  and 
place  as  by  law  directed  and  report  his  acts  to 
the  court  at  the  present  or  next  term  hereof  to 
which  time  the  cause  stands  continued. 

C.  E.  BONNEB,  Judge. 

At  March  term  of  said  court,  A.  D.  1873,  comes 
said  commissioner  and  makes  report  that  in 
pursuance  of  decree  and  according  to  previous 
notice  given  he  did  on  November  1,  1872,  make 
sale  of  the  SW%-NE%  of  Sec.  34-16-7  E.  3d  P. 
M.12  to  W.  W.  Skinner  for  $3600,  he  being  the 
highest  and  best  bidder  at  said  sale.  Sale  made 
subject  to  equity  of  redemption  as  by  law  re- 
quired. 

12.  Here  it  will  be  noticed  that  the  commissioner  sold 
the  wrong  land,  selling  by  his  description  a  tract  six  miles 
too  far  west.  Therefore,  no  valid  conveyance  is  made 
unless  further  advertisement  and  another  sale  is  had. 


152         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

Decree  confirming  report  of  sale  filed  March 
31,  1873,  wherein  the  court  finds  sale  made  in 
pursuance  of  terms  of  decree  and  according  to 
law.  It  is  therefore  decreed  that  if  said  prem- 
ises so  sold  are  not  redeemed,  as  by  law  pro- 
vided, that  at  the  expiration  of  redemption  pe- 
riod the  legal  holder  of  the  certificate  of  sale 
will  be  entitled  to  a  deed. 

Deed  Vol.  35,  page  416. 


RUDOLPH  H.  KAGEY, 

Commissioner  of  Douglas 

County,  Illinois, 

(12)  to 

R.  K.  SHEIXEDY,  assignee 

of  W.  W.  SKINNEB 


Commissioner's  Deed. 
Dated  June  1,  1874. 
Recorded  June  1,  1874; 
Consideration — $3600. 
Ack.  before  Fred  L.  Wright, 
Clerk  of  the  Circuit  Court 


of  Douglas  County,  111. 

SW%-NE-34,  Tp.  15  N.,  R.  8  E.  3d  P.  M.13 

R.  K  SHELLEDY,  1  _ 

,  o  4.^  I  In  Probate, 


Death  and  Estate. 

In  the  County  Court  of  Edgar  County,  Illi- 
nois, at  October  Term,  A.  D.  1874.  In  the  mat- 
ter of  the  Estate  of  K.  K.  Shelledy  late  of  said 
county,  deceased. 

13.  Again  a  wrong  description,  six  miles  too  far  south, 
and  it  will  be  necessary  to  get  a  new  deed  from  the  offi- 
cer of  the  court,  or  that  impossible  owing  to  lapse  of 
time,  a  deed  must  be  secured  from  A.  A.  Taylor,  if  living, 
and  if  not,  from  the  heirs  of  Taylor  Bros.  Or  this  failing, 
a  suit  to  quiet  title  must  be  employed,  in  either  event 
a  costly  procedure  for  the  owner  who  had  no  abstract  to 
earlier  discover  and  point  out  the  defects.  One  cannot 
rely  on  a  court  deed  to  make  a  good  title;  lawyers  and 
others  are  liable  to  err. 


A  SAMPLE  ABSTRACT.  153 

Petition  of  H.  L.  Burgoyne  sworn  to  and  filed 
October  10,  1874,  represents  that  E.  K.  Shel- 
ledy  departed  this  life  testate  while  sojourn- 
ing in  Egypt,  on  Sept.  1,  1874.  That  by  the 
last  will  of  said  decedent  petitioner  is  nomi- 
nated executor  thereof  and  that  he  is  willing  to 
undertake  the  office  and  trust  confided  in  him 

(NOTE. — Heir  ship  is  not  given.) 

Letters  testamentary  issued  to  said  H.  L. 
Burgoyne,  October  10, 1874.  Publisher's  certifi- 
cate filed  Dec.  5,  1874,  shows  notice  had  for  ad- 
justment day. 

Inventory  filed  and  approved  Nov.  1,  1874, 
lists  SW-NE-34-16-8  E.  3d.  P.  M.  in  Douglas 
County,  Illinois,  "title  believed  to  be  perfect 
and  clear  of  incumbrance"  and  land  in  the  val- 
ley of  the  Nile  in  Egypt. 

Final  report  filed  and  approved  June  1,  1876, 
shows  all  claims  against  said  estate  paid  and 
said  executor  discharged.  Files  102,013. 

Last  will  and  testament  of  B.  K.  Shelledy 
proven  in  open  court  by  H.  C.  Gerke  and  Cas- 
per 0.  Westermeyer  the  two  attesting  witnesses 
thereto  admitted  to  probate  and  recorded  in 
Will  Becord  0,  at  page  100,  recites  as  follows : 
"In  the  Name  of  God,  amen. 

I,  B.  K.  Shelledy,  bachelor,  gentleman,  late 
of  Illinois,  U.  S.  A.,  now  of  Blarney  Castle, 
County  of  Cork,  Ireland,  do  make,  publish  and 
declare  this  to  be  my  last  will  and  testament. 


154         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

It  is  my  will  and  I  give  and  devise  all  my 
worldly  effects  and  estate,  both  real  and  per- 
sonal, wherever  situated  and  of  every  kind  and 
nature  to  my  beloved  friend,  M.  P.  Bouslog  of 
New  Orleans,  Louisiana,  U.  S.  A.,  save  and  ex- 
cept any  interest  I  may  acquire  in  Egypt. 

And  I  do  hereby  nominate  and  appoint  H.  L. 
Burgoyne,  executor  of  this  my  last  will  and  tes- 
tament and  direct  that  he  be  not  required  to 
give  bond. 

R.  K.  SHELLEDY  (Seal).14 
Signed  and  sealed  in  the  presence  of  us  and 
in  the  presence  of  each  other,  who  at  his  re- 
quest and  in  his  presence,  hereunto  attach  our 
signatures  as  witnesses. 

H.  C.  GERKE, 

Edwards ville,  Illinois. 
CASPER  0.  WESTERMEYER, 
Dublin,  Ireland. " 

"1  Note. — There  Is  no  Probate 

M4)         tUSL°G  L     °f   tWS   ertate   °n    me   °r 

f     record  in  Douglas  County, 
Death   and   Estate.  Illinois 

14.  Since  the  heirship  of  R.  K.  Shelledy  is  not  shown 
this  must  be  determined  in  order  to  pass  title  to  the 
property,  not  devised  by  his  will,  to  the  proper  persons. 
In  the  inventory  of  this  estate  it  is  stated  that  the  title 
is  "believed  to  be  perfect,"  but  from  the  foregoing  notes 
it  will  be  observed  there  were  many  defects  and  in  fact 
he  had  no  title,  other  than  a  squatter's  title,  or  perhaps 
better,  a  title  by  limitation. 


A  SAMPLE  ABSTRACT.  155 

Miscellaneous  Record  3,  page  461.  Filed  Jan- 
uary 4,  1879. 

(15)  AFFIDAVIT. 

STATE  OF  MISSISSIPPI,  ) 
COUNTY  OF  JACKSON,    ) 

A.  B.  Marriott,  upon  affirmation,  says  he  well 
knew  M.  P.  Bouslog  during  his  lifetime.  That 
the  said  M.  P.  Bouslog  departed  this  life  intes- 
tate, Dec.  1,  1876,  leaving  him  surviving  no 
wife,  but  Olive  P.  Bouslog,  his  daughter.15 
That  said  deceased  left  him  surviving  no  other 
child  or  children  nor  descendants  of  deceased 
child  or  children. 

A.  R.  MOBBIOTT. 

Subscribed  and  affirmed  before  me  this  10th 
day  of  January,  A.  D.  1877. 
(SEAL)  CARROLL  D.  JTJDSON, 

Notary  Public. 

OLIVE  P.  BABBOTTB  1    Plat  Book  B'  page  47' 

(IQ\       tn  I   Dedication  of  Plat 

THE  PUBLIC  I   Dated  April  7*  1880' 

J    Filed  April  15,  1880. 


A  survey  and  subdivision  of  the 
34-Tp.  16  N.,  E.  8  E.,  3d  P.  M.  was  made  April  7, 
1880,  by  George  Vaughan,  the  county  surveyor 
of  Douglas  County,  Illinois,  at  the  request  of 
Olive  P.  Barbour  the  owner  of  the  land  so  plat- 

is.  The  devisee  of  R.  K.  Shelledy  leaves  one  child,  and 
his  estate  not  being  probated,  title  by  descent  rests  on 
the  affidavit  alone.  This  does  not  and  cannot  relieve  the 
property  of  any  debts  the  decedent  may  have  had. 


156         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

ted,  who  on  said  date  acknowledged  said  plat 
to  be  known  as  the  original  town  of  Barbour- 
ville,  Illinois,  and  dedicated  all  streets,  alleys 
and  parks  to  the  use  of  the  public  forever. 

In  said  plat  lot  number  ten  in  block  number 
four  appears  of  record. 

Deed  Vol.  65,  page  126. 
Warranty  Deed. 
Dated  April  20,  1880. 
Filed  April  22,  1880. 
Consideration  $500. 
Ack.,  W.  H.  Hardy,  Jr.,  N. 
P.,     Waukesha      County, 


OLIVE  P.  WHITCOMB  M  and 
G.  E.  WHITCOMB,  her  hus- 
band, 
(17)  to 

WALTEB  R.  TAYLOR,  Kala- 
naazoo,  Michigan. 


Wis. 

Conveys  lot  number  ten  (10)  in  block  number 
four  (4)  of  the  original  town  of  Barbourville, 
Illinois.  Reserving  a  vendor's  lien  to  secure 
$250  balance  of  the  purchase  money. 

It  is  also  a  condition  of  said  conveyance  that 
no  building  be  constructed  nearer  than  twenty 
feet  of  the  street  line  of  said  lot. 

CERTIFICATE." 

STATE  OF  ILLINOIS, 


QJQ 

COUNTY  OP  DOUGLAS. 

(General.)    We  hereby  certify  that  the  fore- 
going abstract  is  a  correct  abstract  of  the  title 

16.  Now  it  must  be  shown  that  Olive  P.  Bouslog,  Bar- 
bour  and  Whitcomb  are  the  same  person  and  that  she  has 
no  divorced  husband  who  may  have  an   interest  in  the 
property. 

17.  The  certificate  of  an  abstract  should  be  full  and 
conclusive.     It  is  in  this  part  of  the  abstract,  where  the 
responsibility  lies,  and  every  abstractor  should  make  his 


A  SAMPLE  ABSTRACT.  157 

to  the  land  described  in  the  caption  thereof; 
that  said  abstract  correctly  shows  all  matters 
affecting  or  relating  to  the  said  title  which  are 
of  record  or  on  file  in  any  of  the  public  offices 
of  said  county,  including  conveyances,  deeds, 
trust  deeds,  tax  deeds,  wills,  contracts,  mort- 
gages (satisfied  or  unsatisfied),  mechanics'  or 
other  liens,  attachments,  certificates  of  levy, 
suits  pending  or  notice  of  Us  pendens,  special 
proceedings  and  probate  proceedings;  that  all 
instruments  are  regular  in  form  and  signature, 
are  executed  under  seal,  and  all  acknowledg- 
ments are  in  conformity  with  the  statutes,  un- 
less otherwise  noted. 

(Judgments.)  We  further  certify  that  there 
are  no  judgments  or  decrees  of  any  courts,  or 
transcript  of  same,  writs,  returns  or  notices 
of  Us  pendens  therein  registered,  recorded,  dock- 
eted, or  otherwise  a  matter  of  record  in  any  of 
the  public  offices  of  said  county,  rendered  with- 
in eight  years  last  past  against  any  parties 
who  have  been  record  owners  of  said  land  dur- 
ing said  period,  except  as  shown,  to- wit: 

M.  P.  Bouslog.  Olive  P.  Whitcomb. 

Olive  P.  Bouslog.         G.  E.  Whitcomb. 

Olive  P.  Barbour.        Walter  B.  Taylor. 

•certificate  complete  In  its  statements  covering  all  the 
points  set  out.  Few  people  fully  appreciate  the  respon- 
sibility under  which  an  abstractor  is  placed  or  what  wor- 
ries and  burdens  are  his. 


158        LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

(Bankruptcy.)  We  further  certify  that  said 
abstract  also  shows  all  bankruptcy  proceedings 
or  certified  copies  of  orders  approving  bonds 
of  trustees  in  bankruptcy  proceedings,  by  or 
against  any  party,  who,  within  one  year  last 
past  has  been  an  owner  of  record  of  said  land, 
which  are  on  file  or  of  record  in  said  county. 

(Taxes.)  We  further  certify  that  we  have 
examined  the  tax  judgment,  tax  sale,  tax  re- 
demption and  tax  forfeiture  records  of  said 
county,  and  there  are  no  unsatisfied  tax  judg- 
ments unredeemed  or  uncancelled  tax  sales  ex- 
cept as  shown,  affecting  the  title  to  the  land 
hereinabove  described  within  the  four  years 
next  preceding  the  date  of  this  certificate,  and 
that  the  taxes  for  1912  and  prior  years  are 
paid  in  full.  Not  certified  as  to  special  assess- 
ments for  improvements.  All  taxes  for  the 
current  year  became  a  lien  on  April  1st,  last. 

This  abstract  consists  of  twelve  pages  and 
seventeen  items  numbered  from  one  to  seven- 
teen both  inclusive,  and  examination  begins  with 
date  of  entry  from  the  United  States  Govern- 
ment. 

Dated  at  Tuscola,  Illinois,  this   1st  day  of 
May,  A.  D.  1913,  at  2  o'clock,  p.  M. 
THE  DOUGLAS  COUNTY  ABSTRACT  &  LOAN  Co. 

By  C.  C.  KAGEY,  Secretary. 
(Corporate  Seal) 


PART  THREE. 

This  division  explains  the  method  of  owner- 
ship and  the  legal  instruments  employed  in  the 
transfer  of  property  rights  in  land.  It  deals 
more  with  the  legal  and  commercial  part  of  land 
transactions  rather  than  with  the  mathematical 
phases  as  did  the  preceding  section. 


(159) 


SUBJECTS  OF  THE  THIRD  DIVISION. 

PAGE 

Titles  -  161 

Alienation  of  Title  -  172 

Conveyancing  by  Individuals  -  -  181 

Deeds    -  189 

Mortgages  and  Releases  -  202 

Estates  Intestate  -  212 

Wills— Estates  Testate      -  -  223 

Judicial  Sales    -  -  231 

Leaseholds  and  Minor  Estates  -  235 

Adverse  Titles    -  -  240 

Land  Values  and  Their  Increase    -        -  246 

Title  Insurance  and  Guaranty  Certificates  253 

The  Torrens  System  of  Registration        -  264 

The  Widow's  Estate  ...  275 


(160) 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

TITLES. 

"Titulus  est  justa  causa  possidendi  id  quod 
nostrum  est."  A  free  translation  of  Lord 
Coke's  definition  of  title  would  be,  The  means 
whereby  the  owner  of  lands  has  the  just  pos- 
session of  his  property. 

Titles  are  divided  into  two  classes  respect- 
ing their  source,  original  and  derivative.  Origi- 
nal titles  are  those  acquired  either 
tJ  source,  by  (1)  discovery,  (2)  occupancy,  (3) 
conquest,  or  (4)  cession.  From  these 
terms  it  will  be  seen  that  an  original  title  can- 
not be  held  by  an  individual  but  rests  in  a  na- 
tion. 

(1)  Formerly  the  mere  discovery  of  land, 
not  subject  to  any  civilized  nation,  was  deemed 
to  vest  the  title  to  such  lands  in  the  nation  whose 
subject  made  such  discovery.     In  later  times 
however  the  mere  discovery  without  occupancy 
will  not  create  a  title  and  the  exploration,  only, 
gives  the  first  right  to  occupy  and  assert  title. 

(2)  It  is  held  that  occupancy  to  acquire  title 
must  be  effectual  and  a  nation  acquires  title 
only  over  such  part  of  the  new  territory  as  it 
may  control  by  the  influence  of  its  settlements. 

(161) 
11 


162         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

(3)  Title  by  conquest  arises  where  one  na- 
tion secures  title  to  a  district  from  another,  by 
force  of  arms.    More  often  in  recent  years  ti- 
tles by  conquest  are  confirmed  by  treaty  and 
all  private  titles  are  not  disturbed. 

(4)  Titles  by  cession  are  all  such  as  are 
granted  by  one  nation  to  another  and  may  be 
the  result  of  conquest,  purchase  or  exchange. 
Thus  are  original  titles  derived,  held  and  trans- 
ferred. 

Derivative  titles  are  all  not  included  as  origi- 
nal, and  are  such  as  may  be  held  by  an  individ- 
ual. They  are  acquired  and  transferred  by  two 
methods  only,  either  by  (1)  descent  or  by  (2) 
purchase. 

(1)  Where  one  receives  title  from  a  relative 
who  dies  without  a  will  he  takes  by  descent.  The 
term  comes  from  the  Latin,  "descenders  id  est, 
loco  superior  ~e  in  inferior  em  movere,"  that  is 
when  land  after  the  death  of  the  an- 
methods  of  cestor,  is  cast  by  course  of  law  upon 


acquiring  foQ  neirs  which  the  law  calls  a  de- 
a  title. 

scent.    This  method  is  spoken  of  as 

the  worthiest  means  of  acquiring  title,  because 
it  is  wrought,  by  act  of  law  and  right  of  blood, 
unto  the  worthiest  and  next  of  kindred  of  the 
ancestors. 

(2)  Titles  by  purchase  are  all  those  acquired 
by  means  other  than  by  inheritance;  the  word 
purchase  is  here  used  in  a  much  broader  sense 


TITLES.  163 

than  usually  understood  and  must  be  distin- 
guished from  the  idea  of  to  buy.  Titles  by 
purchase  may  be  subdivided  into  two  princi- 
pal divisions,  (a)  by  act  of  parties,  and  (b)  by 
operation  of  law. 

(a)  By  act  of  parties  are  all  titles  conveyed 
By   grant,   either   public   or   private.     Public 
grant  is  the  alienation  of  title  belonging  to 
nation,  state  or  municipality,  to  some  individ- 
ual or  company,  the  conveyance  of  the  state 
or   nation    being    known    as    a    patent.      Pri- 
vate grant  is  a  conveyance  by  deed  from  one 
individual    to    another;    these    deeds    may    be 
either  voluntary  or  enforced.    The  first  are  such 
as  are  made  in  pursuance  of  a  contract  or  agree- 
ment, while  the  involuntary  deeds  are  such  as 
are  made  by  order  of  court  in  suit  of  foreclos- 
ure, etc.    The  private  grant  of  an  individual  to 
the  public,  is  termed  a  dedication,  and  is  such 
as  where  a  road,  street  or  park  is  set  aside  for 
use  of  the  public.    The  private  grant  of  one  in- 
dividual to  another,  to  take  effect  at  the  death 
of  the  grantor,  is  a  will  and  is  discussed  in  a 
later  chapter. 

(b)  Titles  derived  by  operation  of  law  are 
classified  under  three  general  heads,  (1)  those 
arising  from  natural  causes,  (2)  those  arising 
from  civil  or  political  relations,  (3)  those  titles 
arising  from  public  policy. 

(1)    Title  to  land  arising  from  natural  causes 
is  such  as  may  be  derived  by  action  of  the  wa- 


164         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

ters.  Where  there  is  an  imperceptible  addition 
thereto  caused  by  the  washing  of  the  sea,  or  the 
deposit  of  a  stream  it  is  called  accretion. 

Where  the  land  seems  to  rise  as  the  waters 
subside  it  is  known  as  reliction,  and  in  either 
case  the  title  to  the  new  part  thus  formed  be- 
longs to  the  adjacent  owner.  Avulsion  is  the 
sudden  removal  or  deposit  of  land  by  action 
of  the  water  and  title  is  not  changed  by  this 
method. 

(2)  Titles  arising  from  civil  or  political  re- 
lations are  considered  under  the  heads  of  emi- 
nent domain,  escheat,  confiscation  and  forfeit- 
ure. Eminent  domain  is  the  right  of  a  govern- 
ment to  take,  or  to  authorize  another  to  take 
a  property  for  public  use  but  by  giving  the 
owner  compensation  therefor.  It  is  by  this 
right  that,  roads  are  often  laid  out,  right  of 
way  for  railroads  and  canals  are  established, 
when  opposed  by  the  individual  owners. 

Escheat  is  the  right  of  a  government  to  take 
the  property  of  an  intestate  who  dies  without 
leaving  any  known  heirs.  Under  such  condi- 
tion his  property  "escheats"  to  the  state  in 
which  he  lives  and  is  sold  and  the  proceeds 
are  turned  into  the  county  treasury. 

Confiscation  is  the  right  to  take  property  of 
the  enemy  in  time  of  war  and  while  usually 
referred  to  personal  property,  yet  a  govern- 
ment may  apply  it  to  land. 


TITLES.  165 

Forfeiture  is  the  term  used  where  the  prop- 
erty of  an  individual  inures  to  the  state  by  rea- 
son of  neglect  of  some  duty,  more  often  for  the 
nonpayment  of  taxes.  Forfeiture  for  nonpay- 
ment of  tax  is  based  on  the  theory  that  every 
land  owner  will  assist  in  his  proportion  to  bear 
the  common  burden  of  public  expense,  and  when 
he  neglects  or  refuses  so  to  do,  Ms  land  is  sold ; 
and  when  there  is  no  other  bidder  the  state  is 
always  ready  to  buy.  Titles  based  on  tax  sales 
are  very  unstable  as  most  of  the  state  laws  re- 
quire a  holder  of  such  to  reconvey  on  his  reim- 
bursement of  the  amount  spent  together  with 
interest  and  costs. 

(3)  Titles  arising  from  public  policy  are  such 
as  arise  by  prescription  or  limitation;  that  is, 
the  title  is  acquired  by  occupancy  for  a  certain 
period  even  though  its  inception  was  without 
permission.  To  secure  a  title  by  this  method, 
the  occupancy  must  have  been  open,  notorious, 
continuous,  adverse  and  hostile  to  all  the  world, 
and  for  a  period  provided  by  the  statute  of  lim- 
itations. The  occupancy  of  limitation,  however, 
need  not  be  complete  in  one  person  but  may  be 
assigned,  or  inherited  and  the  sum  of  the  sev- 
eral periods  of  ownership  may  be  added  to- 
gether to  establish  a  bar  against  the  real  owner, 
but  this  occupancy  must  at  all  times  amount  to 
a  complete  disseizin  of  the  property  as  against 
the  original  owner  or  his  assigns. 


166         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

The  foregoing  outline  will  enable  the  reader 
to  understand  the  nature  of  a  title  as  well  as 
the  transfer;  the  means  whereby  the  transfers 
are  accomplished  will  be  discussed  in  separate 
and  subsequent  chapters.  Above,  the  title  was 
considered  with  reference  to  its  source;  in  ad- 
dition to  this  titles  are  also  discussed  with  ref- 
erence to  their  completeness  and  validity,  and 
are  divided  into  two  classes — perfect  and  im- 
paired. 

The  terms,  perfect  abstract,  perfect  title, 
merchantable  abstract,  merchantable  title,  good 
abstract,  good  title,  bad  abstract  and  bad  title 
are  much  in  common  use  though  not  always 
understood. 

Having  in  a  previous  chapter  distinguished 
the  difference  between  the  abstract  and  the 
title,  these  terms  may  be  understood  separately. 
It  may  also  be  realized  that  a  good  abstract 
may  disclose  a  bad  title,  and  sometimes  a  good 
title  is  poorly  set  out  in  a  bad  abstract. 

There  are  few  or  no  perfect  titles  or  perfect 
abstracts  and  in  fact  all  of  either  may  better  be 
classified  as  otherwise;  impaired  is  the  term 
usually  applied  to  a  title  when  there  is  one  or 
more  defects  some  where  in  the  chain  of  convey- 
ances. 

Merchantable  titles  have  been  defined  as  such 
that  any  reasonably  careful  investor  might  be 
justified  in  accepting  while  if  every  conveyance 


TITLES.  167 

is  complete,  regular  and  accurate 

merchantable   fr°m    the    United    StateS     Govern- 
title.  ment  to  the  present  owner,  the  title 

is  said  to  be  a  perfect  title  of  rec- 
ord. That  is,  if  every  deed  of  transfer  from 
the  source  of  title  to  the  present  owner  is  cor- 
rectly given  of  record;  if  every  mortgage  or 
other  lien,  is  regularly  released ;  if  every  estate 
is  fully  probated  in  the  county  where  the  land 
is  located;  if  every  legal  action  is  completed 
in  regular  order,  then  it  may  be  said  every  link 
in  the  chain  of  title  is  complete  and  it  is  a  per- 
fect record  title.  Perfect  record  titles  are  rare 
and  the  impaired  title  is  more  commonly  spoken 
of  as  a  bad  title,  yet  such  a  term  is  a  vulgarism. 

In  England  the  source  of  title  is  in  the  crown, 
while  in  the  United  States  it  is  in  the  Govern- 
ment, the  sovereignty  of  the  people.  This  was 
so  established  by  the  adoption  of  the  Constitu- 
tion, the  colonies  having  renounced  the  sover- 
eignty of  the  king  in  the  Declaration  of  Inde- 
pendence. 

It  is  a  fact  however,  that  every  owner  of  a 
property  or  holder  of  a  title  in  the  United 
States,  holds  it  only  under  the  implied  liability 
that  it  may  be  controlled  by  the  state  wherein  it 
is  located,  to  such  an  extent  that  the  enjoyment 
of  others  in  their  rights  of  property  will  not  be 
disturbed;  and  also  subject  to  such  laws  as  may 
direct  the  mode  of  conveyance,  descent,  dower, 


168         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

or  any  other  rights  arising  from  any  domestic 
or  commercial  relation. 

The  highest  estate  a  person  can  possesses  in 
a  title  is  called  the  fee,  while  other  or  lesser  es- 
tates are  such  as  estates  for  life,  for 
The  fee. 

term  of  years,  at  will,  by  sufferance, 
etc.  Such  minor  estates  are  called  Chattels  Real. 

Estates  are  also  classed  as  to  the  time  of  their 
enjoyment  as  estates  in  possession  and  estates 
in  expectancy,  while  the  latter  are  further  di- 
vided into  future  estates  and  estates  by  rever- 
sion. A  future  estate  preceded  by  some  par- 
ticular estate  is  called  a  Eemainder,  and  a  re- 
mainder is  also  vested  or  contingent  according 
to  the  existence  of  some  person  to  enjoy  the 
same  immediately  at  the  time  of  its  investment 
or  by  the  event  or  person  remaining  uncertain. 

An  estate  for  a  term  of  years  consists  of 
life  estate,  leasehold,  etc.,  and  usually  termi- 
nates by  lapse  of  time  and  its  own 
limitation,  or  by  surrender  of  the 
rights  by  the  beneficiary  to  the  bene- 
factor; or  if  the  beneficiary  also  acquires  the 
fee  it  is  said  to  merge  into  the  fee  or  larger 
estate. 

When  the  title  to  land  is  transferred  forever 
the  fee  is  said  to  be  passed  and  vest  in  the  new 
owner;  but  when  the  title  is  transferred  for  a 
shorter  or  definite  period  of  time  this  fee  may 
remain  in  the  grantor  who  will  transfer  it  to 


TITLES.  169 

another  who  may  not  receive  the  benefits  of  the 
property  until  the  lesser  estate  is  completed. 

For  example :  A.,  owning  a  farm,  deeds  it  to 
his  wife,  "during  her  lifetime  and  at  her  death 
the  remainder  is  to  pass  to  his  son,  William," 
who  at  the  time  of  the  deed  is  a  lad  ten  years 
old.  Mrs.  A.  here  receives  only  an  estate  for 
life  while  the  fee  passed  at  the  same  time  to 
the  son.  Hence  this  fee  is  the  important  thing 
to  locate  and  to  guard  since  it  controls  the  place 
of  title,  though  not  always  does  it  control  the 
receipt  of  profits  for  a  time. 

An  easement  is  the  right  of  an  owner  of  land 
to  enjoy  the  use  of  adjoining  land  or  building 
and  such  claim  must  be  founded  on  an  instru- 
ment of  writing. 

Color  of  title  is  acquired  by  a  conveyance 
purporting  to  pass  the  legal  title  and  though 
the  grantor  has  no  title  to  convey,  the  posses- 
sion under  such  a  deed  for  the  statutory  limit  of 
years  may  give  a  perfect  title  under  the  law, 
and  though  such  possession  may  be  by  differ- 
ent persons,  their  united  terms  are  sufficient. 
Such  a  method  is  called  tacking. 

After  a  title  has  been  granted  by  the  United 
States  Government,  it  is  then  governed  by  the 
laws  of  the  state  wherein  the  land  is  located. 

Title  in  our  United  States  arises  from  the 
grant  of  the  United  States  Government,  unless 
acquired  from  some  state  prior  to  the  forma- 


170         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

tion  of  the  Union  (see  acts  1787),  or  from  a 
grant  of  some  foreign  power  prior  to  the  Rev- 
olution. 

When  granted  by  the  United  States  a  proper 
entry  in  regular  form  entitles  the  entryman  to 
a  patent,  and  the  right  of  patent  once  vested 
is  equivalent,  as  respects  the  United  States 
Government  to  a  patent  issued;  yet  nothing 
passes  a  perfect  title  but  the  patent,  and  no 
limitation  runs  against  the  state  or  against  the 
United  States. 

The  United  States  Government  grants  title 
to  lands  under  various  names,  and  in  return  for 
different  rewards.  (See  Chapter  VI.)  It  also 
grants  title  under  tree  claims,  desert  or  swamp 
land  acts,  in  exchange  for  state  lands,  to  estab- 
lish public  school  funds,  to  encourage  railroads 
or  highways,  for  personal  service,  etc.,  and  the 
root  of  all  titles  begins  with  the  Government. 

A  grant  of  land  by  statute  is  the  highest  form 
of  title  known.  A  legislative  grant  by  a  state 
is  an  executed  contract  and  a  grant  by  con- 
gress to  a  state  cannot  be  recalled  at  the  will  of 
congress  any  more  than  the  grant  from  one  in- 
dividual to  another. 

The  term  patent  when  applied  to  real  prop- 
erty, means  the  title  deed  by  which  the  United 
States  or  a  state  conveys  its  estate  or 
lands.  A  patent  is  conclusive  against 
the  government  issuing  it,  and  un- 


TITLES.  171 

like  a  deed  the  delivery  of  a  patent  is  not  re- 
quired to  pass  title.  Patents  are  not  so  re- 
stricted as  deeds,  yet  they  must  be  signed  by 
the  executive  or  his  regularly  appointed  secre- 
tary, countersigned  by  the  recorder  of  the  gen- 
eral land  office  and  have  the  seal  of  said  office 
duly  affixed.  The  record  of  a  defective  patent 
or  the  defective  record  of  a  correct  patent  will 
not  pass  title. 

SUGGESTION. — Visit  the  office  of  your  ab- 
stracter  and  inspect  some  of  the  old  Govern- 
ment land  patents  he  has  on  file. 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

ALIENATION  OF  TITLE. 

In  a  previous  chapter  of  the  Feudal  system 
of  land  tenure  in  England  (see  chapter,  "Ori- 
gin of  Land  Ownership")  was  introduced  but 
this  method  of  ownership  was  of  the  state  rather 
than  of  the  individual,  nor  did  the  theory  of 
separate  possession  from  the  crown  obtain  until 
the  reign  of  Charles  II.  In  the  United  States, 
however,  it  has  always  been  the  idea  that  the 
great  expanse  of  territory,  known  as  the  public 
domain,  was  for  the  benefit  of  the  people,  and 
it  has  been  parceled  out  to  them  by 
The  great  our  government  from  the  earliest  or- 
pubiic  ganization.  And  it  has  also  been 

the  idea  to  preserve  the  natural  ad- 
vantages of  agriculture,  mining,  etc.,  to  the  ben- 
efit of  the  individual  rather  than  to  grant  con- 
trol to  large  corporations.  It  has  also  been  the 
intention  of  our  government  to  allot  the  sepa- 
rate portions  to  individuals  in  return  for  some 
service  rendered  it  or  for  a  recompense  of  the 
individual  having  made  some  improvement  to- 
ward making  use  of  the  district  for  settlement. 

First  of  all,  it  should  be  observed  how  our 
United  States  territory  has  been  enlarged  by 

(172) 


ALIENATION  OF  TITLE.  173 

the  acquisition  of  land,  and  as  stated  in  the 
previous  chapter  such  titles  are  considered 
original  titles. 

By  the  Declaration  of  Independence,  our  ti- 
tles, public  and  private,  were  severed  from  the 
British  crown  and  on  the  adoption  of  our  Con- 
stitution were  vested  in  our  Government  over 
such  territory  as  we  had  control. 

The  territory  belonging  to  the  United  States 
has  been  greatly  enlarged  and  in  fact  more 
than  doubled  since  the  organization  of  the  Na- 
tion. (See  figure  VII.) 

The  first  and  greatest  acquisition  was  of  the 
territory  secured  by  the  Louisiana  Purchase,  in 
1803.  Thus  at  one  time  was  our  country  almost 
doubled  in  size,  and  its  resources  increased  in 
a  larger  amount  for  its  people.  Another  and 
almost  equal  addition  of  territory  came  when 
Texas  was  added  to  the  Union  in  1845.  By 
treaty  we  added  the  district  west  of  the  moun- 
tains and  north  of  California  in  1846.  By 
treaty  with  Mexico,  in  1848,  another  immense 
expanse  of  territory  and  untold  wealth  in  mines 
and  lumber  was  received.  By  purchase  and 
otherwise  our  territory  has  been  further  ex- 
tended in  the  acquisition  of  Florida,  the  Gads- 
den  Purchase,  Alaska  and  our  insular  posses- 
sions, until  we  can  almost  say  that  the  sun  never 
sets  on  the  United  States. 

But  with  all  the  enlargement  of  our  domain 
it  has  been  for  the  benefit  of  its  subjects  and 


174         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

they  are  the  ones  who  have  profited  thereby. 
By  the  several  acts  of  Congress  individuals 
may  receive  separate  parcels  of  land  as  their 
own,  to  keep,  to  enjoy  and  to  transfer  one  to 
the  other  in  exchange  as  may  best  suit  them. 

One  of  the  simplest  methods  of  securing  land 
from  our  Government  is  by  the  Homestead  Act, 
in  operation  since  1850.  When  an  individual 
will  move  to  a  district  to  be  settled  and  signify 
his  intention  of  making  it  his  home 
homestead.  an^  w^  a1"66  to  make  sufficient  im- 


provements for  living  there  and  does 
remain  the  short  space  of  from  eighteen  months 
to  three  years,  the  United  States  will  make  him 
a  deed  to  the  property,  in  return  for  his  hav- 
ing established  a  new  homestead.  This  is  done 
to  encourage  the  settlement  of  new  territory, 
and  to  assist  families  in  procuring  homes.  If 
the  settler  located  in  a  prairie  district  and 
would  also  set  out  a  grove  of  sufficient  size  he 
could  have  an  additional  quarter  section  as  a 
Tree  claim. 

Again  if  the  dry  lands  were  watered  by 
ditches  and  dikes,  so  that  vegetation  would  grow 
and  the  territory  could  be  made  habitable,  the 
land  is  granted  under  what  is  known  as  the 
Desert  Land  Act. 

Thus  by  either  of  the  last  two  methods,  acres 
of  semiarid  and  dry  wastes  have  been  reclaimed 
and  are  now  rich  agricultural  districts. 


ALIENATION  OF  TITLE.  175 

As  opposed  to  irrigation  is  the  drainage  to 
get  the  water  off,  and  immense  bodies  of  land 
once  occupied  as  swamps,  lakes  and  bogs 
are  now  our  most  prosperous  communities.  The 
selection  and  improvement  of  our  wet  lands 
has  been  accomplished  by  means  of  the  Swamp 
Land  Act  and  many  a  land  owner  has  profited 
thereby. 

To  encourage  settlements  and  to  partly  repay 
its  soldiers  for  services  rendered,  our  Govern- 
ment has  followed  a  custom  of  allowing  all  sol- 
diers an  order  for  a  quarter  section  of  land. 
These  orders  were  issued  for  service  in  the  War 
of  1812,  the  Civil  War,  the  Spanish  American 
War,  etc.,  and  any  soldier  so  receiving  such 
order  could  lay  claim  to  land  belonging  to  the 
United  States  not  previously  entered  by  an- 
other. 

These  orders  were  called  land  warrants  and  if 
the  soldier  did  not  himself  desire  to  use  it  to 
locate  a  farm  he  could  sell  and  assign  it  to  any 
one  else  and  his  assignee  could  then  secure  all 
the  benefit  thereunder.  There  is  considerable 
of  this  script  yet  outstanding  unlocated,  and 
some  of  it  is  very  valuable. 

To  encourage  education  and  assist  in  the  sup- 
port of  educational  work  the  United  States  Con- 
gress, in  1787,  enacted  a  law  providing  that  in 
all  territories  and  states  organized  subsequent 
to  that  date,  section  number  sixteen  (16)  in 


176         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

each  and  every  township  should  be  reserved  for 
the  use  of  the  inhabitants  of  that  township  for 
the  benefit  of  their  public  schools.  In  1848  a 
second  act  was  passed  granting  also  section 
thirty-six  (36)  for  the  same  purpose  and  under 
the  same  condition.  On  the  organization  of  a 
territory  the  authorities,  school  commissioner 
or  if  under  county  organization,  the  school  trus- 
tees, would  either  rent  or  sell  the  school  lands 
and  invest  the  proceeds  of  the  sale  in  interest 
bearing  securities  so  that  the  original  fund 
would  remain  intact  and  the  income  would  be 
applied  to  the  purpose  for  which  the  act  was 
created. 

Again,  to  encourage  the  improvement  of  the 
interior,  Congress  has  from  time  to  time  ap- 
propriated or  donated  vast  areas  of  land  to 
individuals  and  corporations  who  would  build 
canals  or  railroads  and  provide  means  of  trans- 
portation from  one  part  of  the  coun- 

Railroad          try   to    the    other>      The    building    of 

the  Illinois  Central  Railroad  was 
thus  made  possible,  this  company  securing  all 
even  numbered  sections  for  a  distance  of  nine 
miles  on  each  side  of  its  road.  And  if  any  of 
these  sections  had  been  previously  homesteaded 
or  entered  by  some  one,  the  company  could  se- 
lect lands  equivalent  for  a  further  distance  of 
six  miles.  The  construction  of  the  Union  Pa- 
cific Railroad  across  the  vast  western  plain  was 


ALIENATION  OF  TITLE.  177 

made  possible  by  this  liberal  assistance.  Many 
other  roads  have  been  thus  assisted.  Having 
so  much  land  given  them,  but  always  in  alter- 
nate sections,  they,  the  railroads,  could  sell  the 
same  and  derive  funds  to  assist  in  building  the 
road  and  at  the  same  time  the  road  would  help 
settlers  move  into  the  new  country  and  develop 
it. 

Congress  has  also  from  time  to  time  made  lib- 
eral grants  of  land  to  individuals  for  some  spe- 
cific service  rendered,  usually  of  a  military  na- 
ture in  defense  of  outposts ;  or  for  the  more  of- 
fensive work,  that  of  exploration  and  discovery 
into  the  unsettled  and  newer  parts  of  our  ter- 
ritory. Thus  will  be  found  many  private  grants 
throughout  the  United  States,  and  these  being 
surveyed  and  allotted  prior  to  establishing  the 
common  rectangular  system  of  survey,  remain 

visible  to  the  present  day.       They 
grants6         were  usually  surveyed  irrespective 

of  any  definite  direction  and  their 
boundary  lines  extended  in  any  direction  of  the 
compass.  When  the  later  survey  of  townships 
and  sections  is  made  these  old  private  sur- 
veys remain  and  their  lines  cut  the  meridians 
and  parallels  at  any  angle.  This  is  noted  in 
the  map  of  Illinois  where  the  ' '  four  o  'clock  me- 
ridian" runs  diagonally  across  the  southeast- 
ern portion  of  the  state  marking  one  side  of 
the  Harrison  Purchase. 
12 


178          LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

As  indicated  above  no  right  is  secured  by  an 
individual  in  the  public  land  until  it  has  been 
surveyed  into  its  legal  divisions,  and  by  procla- 
mation of  the  President  is  brought  into  the 
market.  In  early  times,  however,  immigration 
often  advanced  beyond  such  surveys  and  proc- 
lamations, and  hundreds  of  settlers  had  made 
invasion  and  established  homes  in  the  frontier 
long  before  the  district  was  opened  to  settle- 
ment, or  prior  to  its  survey  into  sections.  In 
many  cases  they  had  made  valuable  improve- 
ments and  brought  the  land  under  cultivation. 
When  then  the  lands  were  opened  for  sale,  these 
improved  places  would  bring  such  a  price  that 
the  poor  settler  who  had  worked  so  hard  to 
make  the  improvements  would  be  unable  to  pur- 
chase it  in  competition  and  the  farms  would  fall 
into  the  hands  of  speculators.  To  remedy  this 
evil  a  pre-emption  system  was  adopted  by  our 
Government. 

A  pre-emption  claim  confers  upon  the  set- 
tler the  first  right  to  purchase  a  tract  he  may 
have  improved  but  such  intention  to  file  this 
claim  must  be  made  within  a  stated  time  (by 
Act  of  May  30,  1862,  three  months),  after  the 
district  is  regularly  opened  for  settlement.  The 
failure  of  making  such  filing  has  more  than  once 
cost  a  settler  his  home  as  well  as  the  mistake 
of  a  misdescription  in  making  the  claim.  One 
of  the  first  laws  on  the  subject  enacted  May, 


ALIENATION  OF  TITLE.  179 

1800,  allowed  pre-emptions  in  the  country  north- 
west of  the  Ohio  Eiver.  These  laws  have  been 
supplemented  from  time  to  time  until  the  Act 
of  March  3, 1853,  which  superseded  all  previous 
laws  and  now  constitutes  the  general  laws  of 
pre-emption.1 

It  has  also  been  the  rule  and  in  fact  one  sec- 
tion of  the  law  so  states,  that  no  transfer  of  a 
claim  is  valid  prior  to  completion  of  the  title; 
that  is,  no  right  of  sale  accrues  until  the  dis- 
trict is  opened  for  settlement  and  claim  is  filed 
and  proved. 

Congress  also  passed  laws  allowing  a  quarter 
section  to  a  settler  able  to  bear  arms  who  would 
move  into  the  unsettled  country  and  establish 
a  home.  This  was  under  the  Donation  Act  and 
particularly  applied  to  Flordia,  Oregon  terri- 
tory and  the  Territory  of  New  Mexico,  but  it 
expired  in  1855. 

Thus,  to  summarize,  land  is  acquired,  or  ti- 
tle is  alienated  by  homestead,  tree  claim,  Desert 
Land  Act,  Swamp  Land  Act,  land  warrant, 
school  land,  internal  improvement,  private 
claim,  pre-emption,  donation  and  purchase.  By 

1.  Prior  to  1841  the  laws  passed  did  not  encourage  set- 
tlement in  the  public  lands  before  they  had  been  made 
ready  by  survey;  in  fact  the  legislation  had  been  merely 
as  relief  measures  by  which  trespasses  were  excused.  The 
later  acts,  however,  gave  a  preference  in  purchase  to  those 
who  had  made  settlements  in  advance  to  file  claims  of 
first  right  to  buy. 


180         LAND  SUEVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

any  of  the  above  methods  could  the  individual 
acquire  title  from  the  Government  and  thus  es- 
tablish an  estate  of  inheritance  or  private  own- 
ership.2 

SUGGESTION. — Visit  your  abstracter  and  see  in 
what  manner  the  lands  of  your  county  were  ac- 
quired. 

2.  Individual  ownership  of  claims  in  territory  acquired 
by  the  United  States,  were  confirmed  in  the  owners  and 
the  source  of  title  to  such  tracts  is  in  the  original  gov- 
ernment of  the  district.  Especially  is  this  condition  met 
in  Texas,  California,  Florida  and  some  parts  of  Missouri. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

CONVEYANCING   BY   INDIVIDUALS. 

In  the  preceding  chapters  the  conveying  of 
title  to  land  between  nations  and  the  alienation 
of  land  by  a  nation  to  the  individual  has  been 
discussed.  The  conveyancing  between  nations 
was  accomplished  by  treaty,  or  by 
Conveyancing  legislation;  from  Nation  to  indi- 

andg°byernment  vidual  b?  enactment  of  the  Gov- 
individuais.  eminent  and  by  the  President  for 
the  Government.  Conveyancing 
between  individuals  is  by  acts  voluntary  or  in- 
voluntary of  the  parties  themselves,  in  the  first 
place  by  purchase,  in  the  second  place  by  oper- 
ation of  law.  (See  chapter  XVII.) 

As  noted  heretofore  the  first  record  of  a  con- 
veyance between  individuals  is  found  in  the 
twenty-third  chapter  of  Genesis  and  was  accom- 
plished with  much  ceremony.  But  the  purchase 
price  is  fully  set  out,  the  parties  are  distinctly 
named  and  the  property  conveyed  as  fully  de- 
scribed as  in  many  conveyances  of  more  mod- 
ern times.  For  we  read  in  the  record,  "And 
Abraham  weighed  to  Ephron  the  silver  which 
he  had  named  in  the  audience  of  the  children 
of  Heth,  four  hundred  shekels  of  silver,  current 

(181) 


182         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

money  with  the  merchant.  So  the  field  of  Eph- 
ron  which  was  in  Machpelah,  which  was  before 
Mamre,  the  field  and  the  cave  which  was  there- 
in, and  all  the  trees  which  were  in  the  field,  that 
were  in  all  the  border  thereof  round  about,  were 
made  sure  unto  Abraham  for  a  possession,  in 
the  presence  of  the  children  of  Heth." 

In  the  above  transaction  there  is  every  item  of 
sale,  the  offer  and  the  acceptance  constituting 
the  contract,  the  payment  of  the  purchase  price 
and  the  delivery  of  the  property  sold.  This  was 
accomplished  by  witnessing  the  transaction  and 
in  near  conformity  to  the  more  modern  livery 
of  seizen,1  putting  the  vendor  in  visible  posses- 
sion. While  possibly  nothing  passed  from  one 
to  the  other  in  the  nature  of  a  deed,  yet  it  was 
enacted  of  them  as  the  deed  of  each  and  his- 
tory has  made  a  record  of  the  transaction. 

The  idea  of  transferring  one's  right  or  title 
in  land,  to  another  is  modern  in  its  nature.  In 

1.  Livery  of  seizen  was  the  actual  putting  in  posses- 
sion of  the  vendee  by  the  vendor,  and  was  accomplished 
with  much  ceremony  under  the  common  law.  It  was  an 
ancient  English  custom  and  is  now  obsolete.  By  it  the 
purchaser  was  said  to  be  seized  of  the  property  by  actual 
delivery;  in  one  form  the  seller  took  a  key,  unlocked 
the  door  of  the  house  sold,  handed  the  key  to  the  pur- 
chaser who  then  went  inside  and  locked  the  door,  all  being 
done  before  witnesses.  In  modern  times  the  sale  is  ac- 
complished with  much  less  ceremony  and  the  new  owner 
is  "seized"  of  the  premises  when  he  has  been  delivered 
his  deed. 


CONVEYANCING  BY  INDIVIDUALS.          183 

England  it  did  not  prevail  until  after  the  cus- 
tom of  feudal  tenure,  and  in  America  it  arose 
with  the  adoption  of  our  Constitution.  And  as 
well,  the  quantity  of  the  transfer  has  been  a 
growth,  not  as  to  the  extent  of  acres,  but  as  to 
the  nature  of  the  estate  or  interest  in  the  prop- 
erty conveyed.  At  first  only  the  use  of  the  land 
for  one's  lifetime  could  be  transferred  while 
now,  in  our  own  country  at  least,  almost  any 
degree  of  ownership  may  be  transferred. 

These  degrees  of  interest  in  real  property  are 
classified:  (A)  With  respect  to  quantity  of  in- 
terest. (B)  With  respect  to  time  of  their  en- 
joyment. (C)  With  respect  to  the  number  own- 
ing. (D)  With  respect  to  the  manner  of  their 
enjoyment. 

A.  The  interest  one  conveys  or  receives  with 
reference  to  its  entirety  amounts  (1)  To  an 
estate  of  freehold  and  (2)  To  an  estate  less 
than  Freehold. 

1.  Freeholds  are  further  divided  into  (I) 
Estates  of  inheritance  or  in  fee,  and  (II)  Es- 
tates not  inheritable  or  estates  for  life. 

I.  An  estate  in  fee  is  regarded  as  the  high- 
est estate  or  absolute  ownership.  This  estate 
is  one  which  can  be  conveyed  in  every  particu- 
lar and  one  which  will  pass  by  inheritance.  It 
is  commonly  mentioned  in  American  titles  as  a 
fee  simple,  but  the  latter  word  adds  nothing  to 
its  value. 


184         LAND  SUBVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

II.  Estates  for  life,  are  estate  of  enjoyment 
during  the  life  or  lives  of  some  particular  per- 
son or  persons  or  to  the  time  of  occurrence  or 
nonoccurrence  of  some  particular  event. 

An  estate  for  life  may  be  granted  one  person 
during  his  lifetime  or  during  the  life  of  another, 
and  his  rights  will  cease  on  the  death  of  the 
one  mentioned.  He  may  convey  any  right  he 
possesses  or  for  a  certain  time,  subject  of  course 
to  the  termination  of  the  estate  as  originally 
stated.  Such  an  estate  carries  the  benefits  and 
profits  of  the  lands  during  the  term  conveyed. 

Estates  for  life,  conveyed  by  law,  are  such  as 
the  homestead  and  dower. 

The  homestead  is  the  interest  of  the  surviv- 
ing spouse  and  minor  children  in  the  home  oc- 
cupied at  the  death  of  the  deceased  owner  (fa- 
ther or  mother),  and  the  right  to  re- 
The  tain  the  same  during  the  minority  of 

homestead  i  -i  i    -i      •         n  ••         TP 

interest.  &ny  child  during  the  remaining  lite 
of  the  surviving  father  (or  mother). 
Dower  is  the  right  of  a  part  of  the  lands  of 
which  the  husband  (or  wife)  died  seized  during 
the  remaining  life  of  the  survivor,  and  is  in  ad- 
dition to  the  homestead  right.  These  rights  are 
regulated,  however,  by  the  laws  of  the  several 
states  and  no  exact  rule  may  be  given.  They 
are  more  fully  considered  in  a  subsequent  chap- 
ter on  estates  of  inheritance. 

2.  Estates  less  than  freeholds  are  such  as 
one  created  for  a  definite  term  of  years,  and 


CONVEYANCING  BY  INDIVIDUALS.          185 

more  commonly  understood  as  lease  holds,  and 
the  owner  of  such  an  estate  is  termed  a  tenant. 
Such  a  conveyance  confers  no  ownership  of  the 
soil  but  a  mere  right  of  possession  or  profit 
therefrom.  This  estate  is  terminated  by  its  own 
limitation,  by  surrender,  by  forfeiture  in  viola- 
tion of  some  condition  or  by  the  holder  acquir- 
ing the  fee,  when  it  is  said  to  merge.  This  in- 
terest cannot  be  reconveyed  to  another  unless 
by  express  agreement  with  the  first  grantor, 
and  the  extent  of  the  estate  is  controlled  by  the 
first  agreement.  Though  usually  for  one  year 
or  a  shorter  period,  often  it  is  extended  for  a 
term  of  years,  in  cities  for  ninety-nine  years, 
and  there  seems  to  be  no  legal  restriction  for 
making  it  a  longer  period. 

B.  With  reference  to  their  times  of  enjoy- 
ment, conveyances  are  classified  as  estates  in 
possession  or  estate  in  expectancy.  Estates  in 
possession  are  such  as  the  tenant  owner  has  a 
right  to  enjoy  at  once,  while  the  estate  in  ex- 
pectancy is  to  be  possessed  and  enjoyed  at  some 
future  time  and  is  known  as  a  remainder  or  re- 
version. Thus  if  A.  granted  a  property  to  B. 
for  ten  years  and  after  that  time  to  C.  with  the 
further  condition  that  if  C.  moved  out  of  the 
state,  before  the  death  of  A.,  it  should  revert  to 
A.  B.  has  the  estate  in  possession,  C.  has  a 
remainder  in  expectancy,  while  A.  has  a  rever- 
sion in  expectancy. 


186         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

Or  if  A.  conveys  to  B.  for  his  life  time  only,  B. 
has  the  estate  in  possession  while  A.  has  an 
estate  in  reversion  and  in  expectancy. 

C.  With  reference  to  the  number  owning  a 
property,  estates  are  in  (1)  several ty,  (2)  joint 
tenancy,  or  (3)  tenants  in  common. 

1.  In  the  first  place  all  the  ownership  is  in 
one  individual. 

2.  In  joint  tenancy,  it  is  the  theory  that 
where  a  property  is  owned  by  two  or  more  and 
one  owner  dies  his  surviving  owner,  or  tenant 
in  common  acquires  his  share  to  the  exclusion 
of  the  heirs  of  the  decedent.    That  is,  all  own- 
ership passes  to  the  surviving  partner.     But 
the  fact  that  a  deed  is  made  to  the  husband  and 
wife  jointly  as  grantees  will  not  give  the  sur- 
vivor at  the  death  of  either  the  whole  title,  un- 
less the  deed  is  drawn  to  convey  it  to  them  as 
joint  tenants;  or  except  the  laws  of  inheritance 
of  the  state,  wherein  the  land  is  located,  would 
transfer  the  title  to  the  survivor  by  inheritance. 
The  mere  fact  of  it  reading  to  the  husband  and 
wife  together  will  not  guarantee  the  whole  title 
to  the  survivor  at  all. 

3.  Tenants   in    common   possess    an   estate 
owned  by  several,  each  with  an  individual  in- 
terest, but  not  separated  or  set  apart  to  each 
of  them.    On  the  death  of  an  ancestor  the  heirs 
are  said  to  receive  their  estate  of  inheritance 
as  tenants  in  common. 


CONVEYANCING  BY  INDIVIDUALS.          187 

D.  With  respect  to  their  manner  of  enjoy- 
ment they  are  either  absolute  or  on  condition. 
An  absolute  estate,  as  the  term  implies,  is  a 
conveyance  without  restriction  while  an  estate 
on  conditions  is  one  which  may  be  defeated. 
That  is,  where  A.  conveys  to  B.  a  lot  condi- 
tioned that  no  building  be  erected  within  thirty 
feet  of  the  street  line,  if  the  condition  were 
violated  it  might  work  a  forfeiture  of  the  title. 

The  foregoing  brief  review  of  the  various  es- 
tates to  be  conveyed  by  one  indi- 
Getwhat  vidual  to  another  will  serve  to  intro- 
you  buy.  duce  the  reader  to  the  many  degrees 
of  ownership  to  be  enjoyed,  and  it  is 
well  for  every  purchaser  to  see  that  he  gets  the 
estate  he  bargained  for;  of  times  a  purchaser 
has  bought  a  fee  simple  title  and  had  a  life 
estate  only  conveyed  to  him.  Too  great  care 
cannot  be  exercised,  because  many  times  the  es- 
tate conveyed  is  restricted  when  not  intended 
so  to  be. 

Conveyances  by  individuals  are  effected  by 
their  own  voluntary  acts  during  life,  by  means 
of  instruments  of  writing  called  deeds.  There 
are  commonly  three  varieties  of  deeds,  war- 
ranty, special  warranty  and  quit  claim  deeds, 
and  these  will  be  discussed  at  greater  length 
in  the  next  chapter.  A  will  is  also  the  convey- 
ance of  an  individual  to  become  operative  at  his 


188         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

death,  but  it  is  the  deed  of  a  live  man  and  not 
of  the  dead  as  is  so  commonly  understood. 

A  person  can  convey  almost  any  degree  of 
an  estate  and  great  care  should  be  exercised 
to  scrutinize  all  conveyances  to  see  that  each 
conveys  just  what  is  desired  and  no  more. 
There  are  other  minor  estates  not  discussed 
above,  and  if  the  student  desires  he  may  read 
some  more  exhaustive  treatise  on  the  subject, 
but  the  ones  herein  mentioned  are  the  ones  com- 
monly met  with  in  American  titles.  The  above 
are  also  the  voluntary  conveyances  by  parties ; 
the  involuntary  will  be  explained  in  the  suc- 
ceeding chapter  on  judicial  sales. 

In  all  voluntary  conveyances  there  are  cer- 
tain necessary  steps  to  be  considered,  but  here 
they  are  only  suggested;  the  offer,  the  accept- 
ance, the  transfer,  the  payment  of  the  consid- 
eration and  the  receipt  of  the  evidence  of  trans- 
fer, or  the  deed. 

SUGGESTION.— Visit  the  office  of  your  abstract- 
er  and  ask  to  see  a  deed  that  does  not  convey 
a  fee,  or  one  that  retains  a  life  estate. 


CHAPTER  XX. 

DEEDS.1 

A  deed  of  conveyance  as  commonly  under- 
stood is  that  instrument  of  writing  which,  shows 
by  its  statements  that  the  ownership  of  a  prop- 
erty has  been  transferred  from  one  party  to 
another.  The  name  deed  is  an  inheritance  from 
usage,  because  it  is  said  to  be  the  witness  to 
the  act  or  deed  of  the  parties. 

There  are  several  requisite  or  operative  parts 
to  every  deed,  chief  of  which  are  these: 

1.  The  grantor  or  grantors  and  character  in 

which  he  or  they  act. 

2.  The  grantee  or  grantees  and  character  in 

which  he  or  they  act. 

3.  The  nature  or  kind  of  a  deed. 

4.  The  date  of  its  execution. 

5.  The  date  of  its  delivery. 

6.  The  date  of  filing  for  record. 

7.  The  amount  of  the  consideration  or  induce- 

ment. 

8.  The  operative  words  of  grant,  inheritance 

or  limitation. 

1.  Forms  of  deeds  are  shown  in  the  back  part  of  this 
volume. 

(189) 


190         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

9.  The  legal  description  of  the  property  con- 
veyed. 

10.  The  special  recitals  following  description, 

if  any. 

11.  The  habendum  clause. 

12.  The  signatures  of  the  parties  grantors. 

13.  The  certificate  of  the  acknowledging  offi- 

cer. 

14.  The  affixing  of  the  revenue  stamp,  if  re- 

quired. 

1.  A  deed  must  have  parties  both  grantor 
and  grantee  and  each  of  them  need  to  be  scru- 
tinized carefully.  The  legal  capacity  of  the 
grantor  is  the  most  important  factor  in  every 
deed.  The  grantor,  termed  party  of  the  first 
part,  is  he  who  conveys  the  property,  and  he 
must  be  free  of  any  legal  disability  at  time  of 
executing  the  instrument,  or  the  conveyance  is 
void.  The  grantor  is  also  termed  the  vendor  or 
the  seller,  and  if  he  is  married,  in  most  states, 
the  wife  (or  husband),  must  join  in  the  convey- 
ance to  complete  it.  It  is  not  necessary  to  the 
validity  of  the  conveyance  that  the  post  office 
address  of  the  grantor  be  shown,  but  when 
given  it  ofttimes  helps  to  identify  him  as  a  for- 
mer grantee  where  there  is  a  variation  in  the 
spelling  of  the  name.  It  should  also  be  the  care 
to  give  the  name  the  same  as  the  last  grantee 
where  it  is  the  same  party.  This  will  avoid  con- 
fusion as  noted  at  numbers  three  and  four  of 
chapter  XIV. 


DEEDS.  191 

2.  What  is  said  of  the  grantor,  is  applicable 

in  most  cases  to  the  grantee,  party 
Special  of  the  second  part,  the  vendee  or  the 
noteSin°a  purchaser.  A  deed  "to  the  heirs 
deed.  of "  a  living  person  conveys  no  title. 

A  deed  to  a  person  dead  prior  to  its 
execution  is  void.  There  must  be  a  definite  gran- 
tee; but  natural  disability  such  as  lunacy,  in- 
fancy or  coverture  will  be  no  bar  to  the  convey- 
ance to  them  as  grantee,  though  none  such  could 
be  grantor  until  the  removal  of  the  disability. 
A  deed  executed  in  blank  and  the  name  of  the 
grantee  afterwards  written  in,  will  convey  no 
title,  and  the  acceptance  of  such  a  deed  know- 
ingly is  dangerous.1 

3.  The  nature  of  the  deed  should  be  stated 
in  order  to  determine  the  extent  of  the  estate 
sought  to  be  conveyed.    A  warranty  deed  un- 
restricted conveys  the  entire   estate    and   will 
estop   the    grantor    from    another    conveyance 
should  he  not  possess  the  title  to  the  property 
conveyed  at  the  time  of  its  execution,  but  later 
acquire  it.    In  other  words  it  is  said  to  convey 
a  future  as  well  as  present  interest.    There  are 

1.  A  deed  was  made  by  Hutchings  to  Saunders.  The 
name  of  the  grantee  was  inserted  after  the  deed  was  exe- 
cuted and  acknowledged  by  the  grantor,  and  the  court 
held  that  the  deed  was  void. 

There  must  be  in  every  valid  deed  a  grantor,  a  grantee 
and  a  thing  granted  and  in  this  instance  the  essential 
of  a  grantee  was  lacking.  (Chase  v.  Palmer,  29  111.  306.) 


192         LAND  SUEVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

three  common  forms  of  deeds,  the  general  war- 
ranty, the  special  warranty  and  the  quit  claim. 

The  warranty  deed  as  first  mentioned  above 
is  a  guaranty  by  the  grantor  to  the  grantee  for 
any  loss  he  may  sustain  on  account  of  defect 
in  title,  and  is  good  so  long  as  the  guarantor 
is  solvent.  But  it  is  a  very  bad  practice  to  re- 
ly entirely  on  a  warranty  deed  because  in  fact 
it  cannot  make  a  title  good;  and  the  grantor 
may  die  or  become  insolvent  the  next  day  after 
executing  the  deed  and  his  warranty  become 
worthless.  And,  too,  if  the  title  of  the  grantee 
is  attacked  he  must  defend  it  and  unless  he 
loses  the  case,  he  cannot  turn  to  his  grantor  for 
payment. 

A  special  warranty  deed  is  one  in  which  the 
grantor  warrants  against  his  own  acts  only  and 
in  no  wise  agrees  to  make  good  any  defect  in 
title  prior  to  his  own  ownership. 

A  quit  claim  deed  is  a  mere  release  of  any  in- 
terest either  real  or  apparent  and  does  not  ob- 
ligate the  grantor  in  the  least.  If  he  has  no  in- 
terest none  will  be  conveyed  and  should  he  af- 
ter acquire  an  interest  it  would  not  inure  to  the 
benefit  of  his  grantee  as  in  the  case  of  a  war- 
ranty deed.  It  conveys  a  present  interest  only. 

In  addition  to  the  three  forms  of  deeds  men- 
tioned above  there  is  also  deed  of  trust,  trus- 
tee's deed,  trust  deed,  deed  of  partition,  execu- 
tor's deed,  administrator's  deed,  conservator's 


DEEDS.  193 

deed,  guardian's  deed,  master's  or  commission- 
er's deed,  sheriff's  deed,  etc. 

A  deed  of  trust  is  a  conveyance  in  fact  from 
one  person  to  another  for  the  benefit  of  a  third 
party.  That  is  A.  deeds  to  B.  to  receive  the  in- 
come and  pay  it  to  C.  until  C.  becomes  of  age 
or  until  the  happening  of  some  other  event.  The 
deed  B.  then  executes  is  a  trustee's  deed.  A 
trust  deed  is  in  fact  a  form  of  mortgage  and 
the  title  is  not  put  beyond  recall  of  the  first  par- 
ty as  in  a  deed  of  trust,  unless  he  defaults  in  the 
payment  of  the  debt  secured. 

A  deed  of  partition  partakes  of  the  nature  of 
a  contract  where  several  parties  join  in  one 
instrument  agreeing  to  a  division  of  a  property 
setting  off  to  each  some  particular  part. 

An  executor 's  deed  is  the  deed  of  one  who  has 
been  named  by  a  will  of  a  deceased  person  to 
convey  the  property  of  the  testator.  It  is  a  con- 
veyance by  direction  of  the  testator,  made  in 
his  lifetime;  such  an  authority  made  to  be  ex- 
ecuted during  the  life  of  the  party  making  it, 
is  called  a  power  of  attorney. 

An  administrator's  deed  is  the  deed  of  the 
one  appointed  by  the  probate  court  to  settle  the 
affairs  of  one  who  died  leaving  no  will.  It  is 
necessary  for  him  to  make  such  a  deed  for  all  or 
part  of  the  land  of  the  decedent  if  part  or  all  of 
the  property  must  be  sold  to  pay  the  debts  or 
claims  against  the  estate. 

13 


194         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

A  conservator's  deed  is  the  deed  of  one  ap- 
pointed by  the  court  to  care  for  the  property  of 
one  incompetent  to  care  for  his  own  property; 
and  it  may  happen  that  the  property  must  be 
sold  to  realize  money  to  keep  the  ward.  A 
guardian's  deed  is  similar  in  its  nature  except 
that  the  disability  is  one  of  age  only,  the  ward 
being  a  minor  and  under  a  legal  and  not  a  phy- 
sical disability. 

A  master's  or  a  commissioner's  deed  is  a 
deed  of  an  officer  of  the  court  who  makes  the 
conveyance  of  the  land  when  in  the  nature  of 
the  cause  before  the  court  for  consideration,  it 
becomes  necessary  to  sell  the  property,  as  in  a 
case  of  partition,  or  foreclosure,  both  discussed 
in  later  chapters. 

A  sheriff's  deed  partakes  of  the  nature  of  the 
last  two  mentioned  deeds  and  it  is  merely  the 
fact  that  the  sheriff  executed  the  orders  of  the 
court  in  place  of  the  master  in  chancery  or  the 
commissioner. 

In  all  of  the  above,  except  the  warranty  deed, 
there  is  no  guaranty  whatever  against  loss  and 
no  interest  whatever  is  conveyed,  except  what- 
ever interest  the  grantor  had.  A  court  deed  as 
it  is  often  called,  the  deed  of  an  administra- 
tor, executor,  master  or  sheriff  makes  no 
warranty  at  all  and  they  do  not  pretend  to 
convey  any  greater  interest  or  better  title 


DEEDS.  195 

NO  than  had  the  party  for  whom  they 

in^court     convey«    And  it  frequently  happens 
deed.  that  in  the  proceeding  to  give  the  au- 

thority for  conveyance,  there  is  some 
irregularity  in  the  case  so  that  the  court  does 
not  have  a  proper  jurisdiction,  and  in  fact  the 
court  deed  may  give  a  weaker  title  than  existed 
before.  The  theory  that  a  deed  by  the  court 
makes  a  title  good,  is  erroneous. 

Nothing  but  an  abstract  of  the  title  shows  its 
true  condition  and  this  abstract  may  point  out 
the  defect  of  the  court  proceedings,  or  the  error 
of  the  lawyer  in  the  case. 

4.  The  date  of  the  execution  of  a  deed  is  of- 
ten of  material  importance,  especially  if  it  be 
a  quit  claim  deed,  and  the  date  of  the  acknowl- 
edgement is  in  fact  the  real  date  of  execution, 
because  the  date  it  is  drawn  is  the  one  usually 
inserted   while   it   may    not  be  executed  until 
later. 

5.  The  date  of  delivery  is  important,  but  not 
so  important  as  the  fact  of  delivery.    A  deed 
must  be  delivered  to  pass  title,  either  delivered 
to  the  grantee  or  to  some  third  party  for  de- 
livery on  the  happening  of  some  event.2 

2.  James  P.  Williams  bought  of  one  Hamby  three  acres 
of  land,  and  took  a  conveyance  to  himself  and  sister, 
Mary  Williams.  In  November  of  the  same  year  he  bought 
of  the  same  vendor  nine  acres  adjacent,  and  the  deed  to 
the  three  acres,  never  having  been  recorded,  was  sur- 


196         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

6.  The  date  of  filing  is  important  especially 
when  priority  of  filing  governs  effect  of  convey- 
ance.   If  A.  sells  a  property  and  delivered  the 
deed  to  B.  who  neglects  to  file  his  deed  for  rec- 
ord, C.  may  secure  a  judgment  against  A.  and 
levy  a  lien  against  the  property  now,  in  fact, 
belonging  to  B. ;  then  B.  would  have  to  protect 
the  property  because  by  not  recording  the  trans- 
fer he  had  not  advertised  to  the  public  the  no- 
tice of  his  ownership. 

7.  The  consideration  is  important,  because 
to  support  a  contract  there  must  be  some  mov- 
ing equivalent.     The    amount  of  consideration 
need  not  be  large  or  valuable,  often  one  dollar, 
and  frequently  love  and  affection,  between  par- 
ent and  child.    The  exact  consideration  need  not 
be  mentioned,  exchange  of  property  being  suffi- 
cient, etc. 

8.  The  words  of  grant,  bargain  and  sale  are 
to  be  noted  carefully,  especially  where  the  stat- 
ute requires  certain  phrases. 

rendered  and  destroyed,  and  Hamby  executed  a  deed  for 
the  twelve  acres  to  Robert  Williams,  a  brother  to  James 
P.  and  Mary. 

The  court  held,  in  a  suit  which  was  brought  against 
James  P.  Williams  by  his  creditors,  that  the  deed  to  the 
three  acres  was  wholly  inoperative  so  far  as  Robert  was 
concerned,  that  William  and  Mary  owned  the  land,  and 
that  a  title  to  real  estate  cannot  be  divested  or  reconveyed 
by  the  surrender  and  cancellation  of  a  deed  conveying  it. 
(Cunningham  v.  Williams,  42  Ark.  170.) 


DEEDS.  197 

9.  The  description  is  to  be  noted  most  care- 

fully,   since    if   there   is    one  word 

CsTG 

m  the  wrong  it  might  make  the  whole  in 

description,  error.  The  naming  of  a  wrong  direc- 
tion, the  giving  of  a  wrong  number 
of  section  or  lot  has  often  been  the  cause  of 
much  trouble  and  expense.  It  is  not  always  a 
safe  rule  to  follow  the  former  deed  in  this  be- 
cause it  was  no  doubt  in  error  and  the  same 
error  would  run  through  a  number  of  deeds. 
Make  your  description  conform  to  the  abstract. 
Nor  is  it  necessary  to  name  the  quantity  con- 
veyed, though  the  approximate  amount  is  often 
given  as  so  many  acres,  more  or  less.  But  "ten 
acres  more  or  less"  off  the  north  end  of  the 
section  conveys  nothing. 

10.  The  special  recitals  are  to  be  noted  care- 
fully because  often  some  restrictive  clause  is 
inserted  that  controls  the  conveyance ;  or  if  the 
party  conveying  desires  to  relieve  himself  of 
any  responsibility  of  some  tax  or  lien,  this  must 
be  so  stated,  or  he  will  be  bound  by  the  gen- 
eral terms  of  his  conveyance. 

11.  The  habendum  clause  is  that  clause  for- 
merly employed  but  now  obselete,  that  was  used 
to  qualify  the  estate  conveyed,  but  the  statutory 
form  of  deeds  as  used  in  the  various  states  have 
in  most  instances  done    away    with    the    once 
familiar  clause, '  *  to  have  and  to  hold  to  the  said 
second  party,  his  heirs  and  assigns,"  etc.    It  is 
now  no  longer  needed. 


198         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

12.  The  signatures  are  important  in  two  re- 
spects.   First  that  they  are  affixed,  though  it  is 
not  necessary  that  they  be  written  in  any  exact 
spot  on  the  instrument.    When   the    signature 
is  illegible  or  the  party  cannot  write  at  all,  but 
signs  by  mark,  thus: 

his 
John  X  Doe 

mark 

the  signature  should  be  witnessed.  In  some 
states  it  requires  two  witnesses  besides  the  no- 
tary, whether  the  signing  is  by  mark  or  not.  A 
signature  in  pencil  while  not  always  so  safe  is 
perfectly  legal,  and  signatures  should  always  be 
written  as  given  in  the  granting  clause  of  the 
instrument. 

13.  The  certificate  of  the  acknowledging  offi- 
cer should  be  filled  out  carefully  and  completely, 
noting  the  names  of  the  parties  as  written,  and 
also  stating  the  relation  if  any,  as  husband  and 
wife;  or  if  unmarried   it   should   be   given   as 
bachelor,  spinster,  widow  or  widower,  terms  of 
exactness  and  not  merely  single  or  unmarried 
as  is  so  often  done.    The  terms  should  also  al- 
ways appear  in  the  granting  clause  at  the  be- 
ginning of  the  instrument  as  descriptive  of  the 
parties  of  the  first  part. 

The  notary,  justice  or  whoever  takes  the  ac- 
knowledgment, should  be  very  careful  to  sign 
his  own  name  and  affix  his  seal  of  office,  if  he 


DEEDS.  199 

uses  one.  Ofttimes  such  is  omitted  and  the  con- 
veyance is  defective. 

14.  The  affixing  of  revenue  stamps  when  re- 
quired by  law  should  be  observed  but  the  omis- 
sion does  not  invalidate  the  conveyance.  (See 
Bunker  v.  Green,  48  HI.  243). 

As  of  all  legal  instruments  of  conveyance,  so 
of  deeds,  they  are  particular  in  language,  form, 
signature  and  attestation,  and  a  purchaser 
should  not  accept  an  instrument  drawn  by  an 
incompetent  or  inexperienced  scrivener.  A  few 
cents  saved  at  time  of  purchase  has  often  cost 
hundreds  of  dollars  in  court  decrees  later,  to 
correct  the  defective  conveyance.3 

Errors  caused  in  deeds  by  incompetent  con- 
veyancers are  disclosed  daily  by  our  public  rec- 
ords, among  which  these  may  be  noted. 

1.  Grantor's  name  omitted  or  so  spelled  that 
he  or  she  cannot  be  identified  as  the  last  grantee. 

3.  A  purchaser  asked  a  lawyer  the  price  of  drafting  a 
deed  to  some  land  he  was  buying  from  some  heirs.  The 
lawyer  told  him  one  dollar.  The  farmer  said  he  could 
get  a  justice  to  do  it  for  twenty-five  cents  and  he  did. 
Some  five  years  later  he  sold  out  and  then  discovered  the 
"squire"  had  got  the  description  all  wrong,  and  he  must 
get  a  new  deed.  Many  of  his  grantors  had  died  leaving 
minor  children  and  some  had  gone  to  foreign  parts.  A 
suit  in  court  was  his  only  recourse.  Seventy-five  cents 
saved  cost  two  hundred  dollars  and  it  happened  in  Cen- 
tral Illinois. 

A  squire  is  legalized  to  draw  deeds  but  his  election 
does  not  qualify  him  so  to  do. 


200         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

2.  Consideration  entirely  omitted. 

3.  Signatures  omitted  or  not  written  to  har- 
monize with  the  names  given. 

4.  Name  of  grantee  omitted  altogether. 

5.  In  case  of  a  corporation,  the  name  wrong- 
ly given  and  the  signature  in  error. 

6.  Seals    omitted;    personal,    corporate    or 
official. 

7.  Acknowledgment  imperfect  in  form. 

8.  Indefinite  or  erroneous  description. 

9.  Acknowledged  before  officer  not  allowed 
to  take  attestations. 

10.  Modifying  or  restrictive  clauses  wrongly 
used. 

It  so  often  occurs  that  these  defective  deeds 
are  recorded  before  the  errors  are  discovered. 
Then  the  only  way  to  correct  the  wrong  is  to  se- 
cure a  proper  conveyance  stating  also  it  is 
made  to  correct  certain  errors  in  a  former  ex- 
ecuted deed,  giving  volume  and  page  where 
wrong  deed  is  recorded,  and  then  record  the  cor- 
rect instrument.  If,  however,  the  error  is  that 
of  the  recorder  in  copying,  the  defect  may  be 
cured  by  re-recording  the  original  instrument, 
stating  it  is  re-recorded.  If,  however,  a  new  deed 
cannot  be  had,  on  account  of  death  of  former 
grantor,  etc.,  or  the  original,  if  correct,  cannot 
be  found,  the  only  course  is  to  file  a  suit  in 
chancery  to  cure  the  defects.  This  expensive 
proceeding  may  often  be  avoided  by  care  at  the 
beginning. 


DEEDS.  201 

A  TITLE  DEED  IN  POETRY. 

A  deed  for  the  conveyance  of  a  piece  of  land 
and  one  of  the  greatest  legal  curiosities  in  the 
world,  was  drawn  up  in  1881  by  J.  Henry  Shaw, 
a  lawyer  at  Beardstown,  Illinois.  The  curio 
complies  with  every  requirement  of  law,  and 
has  more  than  once  been  declared  by  the  court 
of  that  state  to  be  entirely  valid. 

I,  J.  Henry  Shaw,  the  grantor  herein, 

Who  live  at  Beardstown  the  county  within, 

For  seven  hundred  dollars  to  me  paid  today 

By  Charles  E.  Wyman,  do  sell  and  convey 

Lot  two    (2)    in   block   forty    (40),   said   county   and 

town, 

Where  Illinois  River  flows  placidly  down, 
And  warrant  the  title  forever  and  aye, 
Waiving   homestead   and   mansion   to   both   a  goodby, 
And  pledging  this  deed  is  valid  in  law. 
I  add  here  my  signature,  J.  Henry  Shaw.     (Seal) 

Dated  July  25,  1881. 

I,  Sylvester  Emmons,  who  live  at  Beardstown, 
A  notary  public  of  fame  and  renown, 
Of  the  county  of  Cass  in  Illinois  state, 
Do  certify  here  that  on  the  same  date 
One  J.  Henry  Shaw  to  me  did  make  known 
That  the  above  deed  and  name  were  his  own, 
And  he  stated  he  sealed  and  delivered  the  same 
Voluntarily,  freely,  and  never  would  claim 
His  homestead  therein;  but,  left  all  alone, 
Turned   his  face  to  the   street  and   his  back  to  his 
home. 

S.  EMMONS,  N.  P. 
Dated  August  1,  1881. 

(Seal). 

SUGGESTION. — Visit  the  office  of  your  abstract- 
er  and  get  him  to  show  you  some  defective 
deeds. 


CHAPTER  XXI. 

MORTGAGES  AND  RELEASES. 

A  mortgage  in  modern  times  is  a  conveyance 
of  an  estate  for  the  security  of  a  debt,  and  the 
conveyance  is  to  become  void  on  payment  of 
the  amount  due. 

The  development  of  the  use  of  the  mortgage 
is  quite  interesting.  In  early  English  times  the 
creditor,  or  as  we  now  call  him,  the  mortgagee, 
took  actual  possession  of  the  premises  pledged 
and  collected  the  income  himself.  When  the 
returns  had  satisfied  the  debt,  he  returned  the 
property  to  its  former  owner,  and  this  was 
known  as  a  living  pledge. 

Later  it  was  so  arranged  that  on  any  breach 
of  the  condition  of  the  pledge,  the  security  be- 
came forfeited,  lost  or  dead  to  the  pledger  and 
this  was  known  as  the  dead  pledge.  In  the  lan- 
guage of  that  time  and  derived  from  the  Welch, 
the  word  was  developed  1 l  mort-gage. " 

This  last  form  of  pledge  worked  a  great  hard- 
ship on  the  borrower,  for  if  the  debt  was  not 
paid  by  the  time  of  the  due  date,  the  property 
was  lost  to  the  mortgagor  absolutely,  and  he 
could  not  recover  even  though  he  later  made  a 
tender  of  the  amount  due.  The  day  named  for 

(202) 


MORTGAGES  AND  RELEASES.  203 

• 

the  payment  of  the  debt  was  called  the  "law 
day"  and  if  payment  was  not  made  according 
to  the  exact  terms  of  the  condition,  the  mort- 
gagee became  the  absolute  owner  of  the  prop- 
erty. 

In  later  years  equity  interposed  to  explain 
that  it  was  unreasonable  that  the  mortgagee 
should  retain  the  full  value  of  the  property  when 
it  was  merely  pledged  to  him  to  secure  a  much 
smaller  debt;  that  a  breach  of  the  covenant  of 
the  pledge*  was  subject  to  a  penalty,  and  that  in 
justice  all  the  creditor  could  be  entitled  to  was 
his  debt,  interest  and  costs.  And  the 
The  rule  was  established  that  though  the 

SaySver  condition  of  the  pledge  was  not 
his  property,  strictly  adhered  to,  whereby  the 
property  became  forfeited,  yet  if  the 
mortgagor  tendered  the  amount  of  the  debt 
within  a  reasonable  time,  he  should  be  entitled 
to  a  return  of  his  property. 

The  privilege  to  retrieve  his  loss  is  known  as 
the  right  of  equity  of  redemption,  and  the  debt- 
or was  wont  to  draw  out  the  time  so  that  he  im- 
posed on  the  creditor,  until  the  court  would 
have  to  take  notice  of  it  and  enter  a  decree  that 
payment  must  be  made  within  a  short  day 
named,  or  the  equity  of  redemption  would  be 
barred  and  the  mortgage  would  be  foreclosed. 

The  procedure  of  going  to  court  to  establish 
time  of  redemption  was  irritating  to  a  creditor, 


204         LAND  SUBVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

especially  when  the  debt  was  past  due  and  per- 
haps the  security  was  deteriorating  by  misuse. 
This  led  to  the  use  of  a  special  form  of  mort- 
gage known  as  the  "cut  throat  mortgage"1 
whereby  the  mortgagee,  on  default  of  payment, 
and  by  merely  advertising  the  premises  for  a 
few  days,  could  make  sale  of  the  land  mortgaged 
and  pay  his  debt  out  of  the  proceeds,  he  himself 
making  a  deed  to  the  purchaser.  This  was 
somewhat  like  the  "dead  pledge"  above  men- 
tioned except  that  the  property  must  be  sold  at 
auction  and  any  overplus  was  to  be  paid  to  the 
former  owner  (or  mortgagor).  In  most  of  the 
states  of  the  United  States  this  form  has  been 
abolished  by  law  and  a  statutory  form  pre- 
scribed. This  statutory  form  is  usually  very 
brief  and  the  words  of  conveyance,  mortgage 
and  warrant,  govern  the  estate  conveyed.  It  is 
a  theory  in  law  that  once  a  mortgage,  always 
a  mortgage  even  though  it  is  in  the  form  of  a 
deed,  and  when  it  is  shown  the  conveyance  is  in 
fact  a  pledge  only,  the  courts  will  enforce  a  re- 
conveyance of  the  property  on  payment  of  the 
debt  secured.  The  form  of  mortgages  now  pre- 
scribed in  the  several  states  is  different  from 

L  This  form  of  mortgage  was  abolished  in  Illinois  in 
1879  and  foreclosures  are  now  had  in  the  chancery  court. 
The  mortgagor  has  fifteen  months  to  redeem  his  property 
after  the  sale  and  it  is  not  absolutely  lost  to  him  on  first 
forfeiture  of  payment  of  interest  as  under  the  old  law. 


MORTGAGES  AND  RELEASES.  205 

the  other  almost  in  every  instance  so  that  no 
general  form  can  be  referred  to. 

A  mortgage  in  its  earliest  form  was  effected 
by  the  execution  of  two  separate  and  distinct 
instruments  at  the  same  time;  the  one  was  an 
absolute  conveyance  of  the  land  mortgaged 
while  the  other,  called  the  deed  of  defeasance, 
was  a  sort  of  agreement  or  contract  providing 
that  if  the  debt  was  paid  as  agreed,  a  reconvey- 
ance of  the  premises  mortgaged  would  be  made. 
In  time  the  two  deeds  were  merged  into  one 
instrument  having  a  paragraph  reciting  the 
agreement  of  defeasance  and  this  combined  con- 
veyance and  agreement  of  release  on  payment 
of  the  debt,  in  its  various  forms,  is  the  mort- 
gage used  at  present. 

There  is  yet  used  a  note  or  bond  executed  with 
the  mortgage,  reciting  the  amount  of  the  debt, 
the  time  and  terms  of  payment,  place  of  pay- 
ment, etc.,  and  the  mortgage  is  considered  as 
given  to  support  or  secure  the  payment  of  the 
note.  Hence  like  in  the  earlier  times  two  in- 
struments are  executed,  one  is  given  in  support 
of  the  other. 

The  fact  that  an  owner  has  executed  a  mort- 
gage or  has  mortgaged  his  land,  does  not  de- 
prive him  of  its  use  and  ownership.  He  can 
use,  rent  or  sell  his  property  just  as  freely  as 
before  but  in  case  of  a  sale  he  will  receive  the 
price  less  the  amount  of  the  mortgage  debt,  and 


206         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

the  new  owner  will  then  be  liable  for  its  pay- 
ment. And  in  case  the  new  owner  makes  de- 
fault in  payment  of  the  interest  when 

^ue  or  °^  ^e  Principal  as  originally 
agreed,  the  mortgage  may  be  fore- 
closed and  the  property  sold.  The  interest  or 
estate  one  has  in  a  mortgaged  property  above 
the  amount  of  the  indebtedness  is  called  the 
equity  and  is  the  difference  between  the  amount 
of  the  mortgage  and  the  market  value  of  the 
property ;  this  equity  may  be  bought  or  sold  the 
same  as  any  other  property,  and  as  the  mort- 
gage is  reduced  the  equity  is  increased. 

Where  a  mortgagee  also  acquired  the  title  to 
the  premises  or  buys  the  equity  therein,  it  is 
called  a  merger  and  if  he  yet  owns  the  mort- 
gage it  will  operate  as  a  release. 

And  where  one  makes  a  mortgage  to  a  prop- 
erty to  which  he  has  not  yet  acquired  title,  his 
title  when  he  does  receive  it,  becomes  at  once 
burdened  with  the  lien  of  his  mortgage  and 
must  be  treated  with  him  having  had  the  title 
when  the  mortgage  was  executed.  His  warrant 
in  the  mortgage  as  in  a  warranty  deed  will 
estop  him  from  any  denial  of  the  indebtedness. 

A  trust  deed  is  a  form  of  mortgage  used  in  a 
few  states,  and  is  a  conveyance  to  a  third  per- 
son in  place  of  to  the  creditor  (mortgagee)  di- 
rect. The  conveyance  is  like  the  mortgage,  an 
incident  to  the  debt  and  executed  merely  to- 


MORTGAGES  AND  RELEASES.  207 

pledge  or  secure  its  payment.  The  trustee 
named  in  the  trust  deed  may  know  nothing  of 
the  transaction  until  if  the  mortgagor  does  not 
pay  his  debt  the  owner  of  the  paper  will  apply 
to  the  trustee  to  have  him  cause  the  property 
to  be  sold  or  if  the  debt  is  paid  the  mortgagor 
receives  from  him  a  release.2 

A  mortgage  to  be  valid  should  correctly  de- 
scribe the  premises  mortgaged,  as  well  as  iden- 
tify the  indebtedness  secured.  As  between  two 
mortgages,  the  first  one  filed  for  record  is  the 
prior,  or  senior  lien,  unless  otherwise  specific- 
ally stated  in  the  instrument  itself. 

When  one  sells  a  tract  of  land  and  does  not 
receive  all  of  the  purchase  price  for  it,  he  is  said 
to  have  an  equitable  lien  for  the  balance.  This 
amount  of  balance  if  stated  in  the  deed  and  if 
it  is  also  stated  that  a  lien  is  retained  to  secure 
payment  of  same,  is  called  a  vendor's  lien.  If 
however  in  place  of  reserving  the  lien  in  the 
deed  the  vendor  takes  a  mortgage  back  from 

2.  In  some  states,  as  in  Missouri,  the  trustee  acts  only 
in  case  of  a  foreclosure,  the  release  being  accomplished 
by  the  recorder  noting  on  the  margin  of  the  record  of 
the  mortgage  that  the  original  notes  and  mortgage  were 
exhibited  to  him  marked  canceled. 

Where  some  of  the  notes  have  been  lost  or  where  the 
owner  forgets  or  neglects  to  exhibit  the  paid  instruments 
to  the  recorder  for  the  above  notation,  confusion  is  liable 
to  occur;  and  where  a  trustee  executes  a  release  he  should 
satisfy  himself  that  all  notes  have  been  paid.  As  a  rule 
of  caution,  all  canceled  notes  should  be  preserved. 


208         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

the  purchaser  for  the  amount  due  and  it  is 
stated  that  the  mortgage  is  for  part  of  the  pur- 
chase price,  it  is  known  as  a  purchase  mort- 
gage. Purchase  mortgages  are  considered  high- 
er securities  than  other  mortgages  and  they  are 
each  of  them  free  from  any  contingent  claim 
of  dower  or  homestead  interest  whether  the 
wife  of  the  mortgagor  joined  in  their  execu- 
tion or  not.  The  advantage  of  taking  a  pur- 
chase mortgage  in  place  of  reserving  the  lien 
in  the  deed,  is  that  it  is  perhaps  more  easily 
sold  and  negotiated  if  desired. 

Mortgages  are  valuable  and  may  be  trans- 
ferred the  same  as  any  other  property.  If  the 
security  is  a  mortgage  direct,  the  transfer  is 
accomplished  by  the  mortgagee,  who  is  also  the 
seller,  executing  an  assignment;  this  is  an  in- 
strument much  like  a  deed,  reciting  the  parties, 
consideration  and  describing  the  security  trans- 
ferred by  giving  its  parties,  date,  amount,  vol- 
ume and  page  where  recorded,  etc.  This  assign- 
ment is  then  acknowledged  and  by  it  the  new 
owner  called  the  assignee  after  having  his  deed 
of  assignment  recorded  may  make  a  proper  re- 
lease when  the  debt  is  paid.  In  a  trust  deed  the 
securities  may  be  transferred  without  indorse- 
ment or  by  indorsement  of  the  note  only,  and 
when  all  the  notes  are  paid,  the  then  owner  of 
the  property  should  exhibit  the  paid  notes  to 
the  trustee  and  secure  a  release. 


MORTGAGES  AND  RELEASES.  209 

And  whenever  a  release  is  obtained  it  should 
be  filed  for  record  at  once,  first  to 

taereiease.  sllow  Pavinent  of  the  mortgage  and 
second  that  it  may  be  done  before 
the  release  is  lost.  Care  should  be  exercised  to 
have  a  mortgage  properly  released  of  record 
either  by  securing  and  filing  a  properly  exe- 
cuted release  deed  or  by  having  the  mortgagee, 
or  other  proper  person,  release  the  lien  by  a  re- 
lease written  on  the  margin  of  the  record.  Oft- 
times  the  notes  are  stamped  paid,  the  mortgage 
is  marked  cancelled  and  because  the  immediate 
parties  know  the  debt  is  satisfied  nothing  more 
is  done  ;  but  in  after  years,  when  others,  stran- 
gers to  this  transaction,  are  searching  the  rec- 
ords, if  the  release  cannot  be  found,  confusion 
arises,  time  is  lost  and  frequently  much  expense 
is  incurred. 

Of  course  if  a  mortgage  is  not  paid  and  it  be- 
comes necessary  to  have  the  court  sell  the  prop- 
erty, this  fact  of  sale,  whereby  the  mortgagor's 
interest  is  transferred,  and  out  of  the  proceeds 
the  debt  is  satisfied,  is  sufficient  evidence  of  a 
cancellation  of  the  encumbrance,  and  acts  as  a 
release  of  the  mortgage. 

The  power  of  sale  under  a  mortgage  or  trust 
deed  must  be  strictly  pursued  and  the  utmost 
fairness  observed  in  its  execution. 
^  Purcnaser  at  a  sale  under  a  fore- 


does  not       closure   of    a  mortgage    or    a  trust 
utle  egood.     deed,  receives  only  the  title  formerly 

14 


210         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

held  by  the  mortgagor,  burdened  with  all  its 
defects  and  without  a  warranty.  A  deed  from 
an  officer  of  the  court  conveys  no  more 
than  such  interest  as  the  original  mortgagor 
possessed  and  the  court  makes  no  warranty, 
it  merely  acting  as  a  trustee  in  accomplish- 
ing the  transfer  from  the  mortgagor  to  the 
purchaser. 

Where  no  release  of  a  mortgage  is  shown  of 
record,  the  law  will  presume  the  satisfaction 
of  the  mortgage  and  the  payment  of  the  debt, 
if  the  mortgagee,  or  holder  of  the  paper,  has 
not  attempted  to  assert  the  right  of  collection, 
or  brought  suit  for  foreclosure  during  the  stat- 
utory period  of  limitation,  of  the  state  where 
the  property  is  located,  next  following  the  ma- 
turity of  the  debt.  This  period  of  limitation  is 
usually  twenty  years  but  varies  in  many  states, 
and  the  statute  of  each  state  will  govern  as  to 
whether  the  time  is  ten  years,  twenty  years  or 
some  other  period. 

A  mortgage  is  best  released  by  the  record  of 
a  regularly  executed  release  by  the  mortgagee 
or  trustee.  Yet  the  statutes  declare  no  action 
to  foreclose  may  be  had  after  the  period  of 
limitation  has  been  completed;  but  so  long  as 
interest  or  any  part  of  the  principal  is  paid,  or 
if  there  are  interested  parties  under  legal  disa- 
bility, this  limitation  period  does  not  commence 
to  run. 


MORTGAGES  AND  RELEASES. 


211 


SUGGESTION. — Examine  your  abstract  and  see 
if  any  mortgage  on  the  property  was  ever  fore- 
closed; also,  determine  if  all  mortgages  are 
properly  released. 


A  corner  common  to  four  townships.    View  looking  west. 


CHAPTER  XXII. 

ESTATES  INTESTATE. 

In  a  preceding  chapter  it  was  remarked  that 
there  were  but  two  methods  of  transferring  ti- 
tles, viz.,  by  voluntary  act  of  the  individual  and 
by  operation  of  law.  This  first  method  is  ex- 
plained by  the  chapters  on  the  deed,  mortgage, 
will,  etc.,  wherein  the  transfer  is  voluntary  from 
one  to  another.  Transfers  by  operation  of  law 
are  such  as  are  involuntary  on  the  part  of  the 
original  owner,  but  from  some  cause  a  condi- 
tion arises  whereby  the  ownership  is  changed 
from  one  to  another. 

The  simplest  example  is  in  fact  a  transfer  by 
descent,  or  a  distribution  of  property  according 
to  the  law  of  succession  after  death.  Title  ac- 
quired herein  is  in  no  part  by  purchase  but  by 
descent  only,  and  the  law  when  referring  to  the 
transfer  of  land  by  inheritance  is  called  the  law 
of  descent,  but  when  relating  to  personal  prop- 
erty it  is  the  law  of  distribution. 

On  the  death  of  any  one,  especially  if  the 
person  died  possessed  of  real  estate,  the  estate 
should  be  probated  or  administered  upon  in  the 
proper  court  to  determine  these  important 
facts. 

(212) 


ESTATES  INTESTATE.  213 

1.  To  determine  the  death  of  the  ancestor. 

2.  To  establish  whether  or  not  the  deceased 
left  a  will. 

3.  To  establish  by  proper  court  the  heirship. 

4.  To  provide  for  relieving  the  estate  of  all 
debts  and  claims  against  it. 

5.  To  collect  all  assets  of  the  decedent  and 
to  properly  distribute  them  among  the  heirs 
entitled. 

The  right  to  take  property  by  descent  is  not 
absolute,  but  depends  entirely  on  the 
inheritance  ^aw  or  statute  of  the  several  states. 
Some  provide  that  a  person  may  in- 
herit both  personal  and  real  property,  and  the 
law  in  force  at  the  time  of  the  death  of  the  in- 
testate governs  the  distribution  to  the  conclu- 
sion of  law  enacted  prior  or  subsequent  thereto. 

A  person's  home  or  domicile  is  where  he  has 
his  permanent  home  and  principal  establish- 
ment, to  which  when  he  is  absent,  it  is  his  inten- 
tion to  return.  Every  person  is  deemed  to  have 
a  home  somewhere  and,  by  the  American  rule, 
one's  original  domicile  continues  until  a  new 
one  is  established.  In  the  inheritance  of  prop- 
erty, the  law  of  the  state  wherein  the  land  is 
situate  governs  its  descent,  while  the  distribu- 
tion of  the  personal  property  is  controlled  by 
the  law  of  the  place  or  home  of  the  intestate  at 
the  time  of  his  death.  These  may  or  may  not 
be  of  the  same  state. 


214         LAND  SUBVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

The  laws  of  descent  as  they  prevailed  under 
the  common  law  of  England,  have  been  changed 
and  amended  by  the  states,  so  that  no  fixed  rule 
can  be  given,  but  the  statute  of  each  state  must 
be  consulted  to  determine  the  exact  laws  of  the 
place,  and  order  of  descent  in  force  there. 

In  general  the  children,  if  any,  of  an  intestate 
are  considered  nearest  of  kin  and  take  equal 
shares  in  the  property ;  if  a  child  has  died  leav- 
ing children  the  heirs  of  the  deceased  child  in- 
herit his  part,  technically  speaking  the  rule  of 
descent  is  per  stirpes  and  not  per  capita. 

Adopted    children    will    inherit    from    their 

adopted  parents,  where  the  statute 

Adopted        go  provides,   but  they   also   inherit 

children  / 

and  others,  trom  their  natural  parents ;  but 
adopted  parents  cannot  inherit  from 
their  adopted  children.  Posthumous  children 
inherit  the  same  as  though  born  during  the  life 
time  of  the  decedent.  Illegitimate  children  at 
common  law  had  no  inheritance  yet  in  nearly  all 
of  the  states  the  statutes  provide  they  are  per- 
mitted to  inherit  from  the  mother  only,  but  a 
subsequent  marriage  of  the  parents  or  an  ac- 
knowledgment of  them  by  their  father,  will  re- 
move such  bar  of  inheritance. 

Half-bloods  inherit  in  equal  shares  from  their 
common  parent  only.  Living  children  omitted 
from  a  will  usually  take  as  an  equal  heir  where 
the  omission  is  shown  to  be  unintentional,  and 


ESTATES  INTESTATE.  215 

children  born  after  the  making  of  a  will,  either 
before  or  after  the  testator's  death,  take  as 
heirs.  In  some  states,  however,  they  may  be  ex- 
cluded where  the  will  itself  so  provides. 

At  common  law  the  surviving  spouse  did  not 
inherit  from  the  other  but  this  is  changed  by 
state  enactment,  and  now  in  most  of  the  states 
they  inherit  in  the  absence  of  children  or  next 
of  kin.  In  some  states,  however,  they  take  with 
the  children ;  they  also  have  an  interest  for  life 
in  the  remainder  of  the  real  estate,  which  inter- 
est is  known  as  a  dower  interest.  The  local 
statute  must  be  consulted  to  determine  what  is 
the  law  of  the  place. 

It  was  the  rule  at  common  law  that  an  estate 
could  not  ascend,  but  this  has  been  changed  in 
nearly  all  the  states,  and  a  father  or  mother,  or 
both  inherit  where  there  are  no  lineal  descend- 
ants of  the  intestate  and  often  even  where  there 
are.  Brothers  and  sisters,  or  the  heirs  of  de- 
ceased brothers  and  sisters  are  often  given  pre- 
cedence over  parents  as  heirs.  Brothers  and 
sisters  on  the  half-blood  often  share  with  those 
of  full  blood,  but  some  times  they  are  excluded 
if  the  property  does  not  come  from  a  common 
ancestor. 

In  the  absence  of  descendants,  parents,  a  sur- 
viving spouse,  brother  or  sister,  the  statutes 
usually  provide  for  inheritance  by  the  next  of 
kin,  and  they  also  state  who  are  so  considered. 


216         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

Next  of  kin  are  those  who  are  most  nearly  re- 
lated by  blood  or  by  consanguinity.  Those  re- 
lated by  marriage  are  in  relation  by  affinity, 
and  yet  others  may  be  related  by  adoption. 
While  the  law  presumes  every  one  to  have  heirs, 
if  none  can  be  discovered  the  property  escheats 
to  the  state. 

Upon  the  death  of  an  intestate  his  real  prop- 
erty at  once  descends  and  the  title  becomes  im- 
mediately vested  in  his  heirs,  by  operation  of 
law,  without  any  order  from  a  court.  His  prop- 
erty is  liable,  however,  for  the  payment  of  any 
debts  of  the  decedent.1  The  personal  property 
is  said  to  vest  in  trust  in  the  personal  repre- 
sentatives, and  until  the  administrator  quali- 
fies, it  is  said  to  remain  in  abeyance. 

As  to  whom  should  take  charge  of  an  estate, 
receive  moneys  on  hand  and  due,  pay 
an(*  distribute  an  remain- 


th 
estate.  der  among   the   heirs    entitled,    the 

statute  of  the  state  will  provide. 
Usually  the  surviving  spouse  has  first  right, 
next  a  child,  or  some  one  next  of  kin.  Those 
having  a  prior  right  may  nominate  some  one 

1.  Real  estate  is  never  legally  relieved  of  possible 
debts  of  an  ancestor,  nor  is  the  heirship  properly  deter- 
mined until  some  proceeding  in  probate  is  had;  purchasers 
of  land  or  real  estate  securities  accepting  a  title  in  which 
occurs  an  unsettled  estate  must  be  governed,  at  their  peril, 
by  the  circumstances  either  of  time  or  condition. 


ESTATES  INTESTATE.  217 

for  the  court  to  appoint,  and  when  the  court 
makes  the  appointment,  the  person  accepting 
the  trust  is  known  as  an  administrator  and  dis- 
tinguished from  executor  who  is  named  by  a 
will,  to  make  settlement  of  the  estate.  If  an 
administrator  dies  or  resigns  before  the  estate 
is  fully  settled  another  appointed  by  the  court 
to  complete  the  settlement  is  called  an  adminis- 
trator de  bonis  non.  If  a  will  makes  no  ap- 
pointment of  executor,  the  one  appointed  by  the 
court  to  execute  the  will  is  known  as  the  admin- 
istrator with  the  will  annexed. 

The  settlement  of  an  estate  is  known  as  the 
administration  of  the  estate  and  consists  first 
in  the  assembling  of  all  personal  property  by 
the  person  in  charge  as  above  named;  second, 
in  the  payment  of  all  debts  of  the  decedent; 
third,  in  the  distribution  of  any  personal  prop- 
erty left  after  the  payment  of  the  debts.  Or  if 
there  was  a  will,  the  executor  will  see  to  the 
distribution  of  any  particular  legacy  to  the 
proper  person. 

Heirs  are  under  no  legal  liability  to  pay  the 
debts  of  their  ancestor  from  whom  they  have 
inherited  real  estate  unless  the  per- 
sonal  estate  of  the  deceased  is  insuf- 
ficient to  liquidate  all  claims.  Credi- 
tors must  collect  first  from  the  personal  repre- 
sentative, administrator  or  executor,  who  will 
pay  out  of  the  proceeds  of  the  personal  prop- 


218         LAND  SUEVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

erty  until  this  source  is  exhausted.  If  this  fund 
is  not  sufficient  to  satisfy  all  claims  against  the 
estate,  it  will  be  necessary  to  secure  funds  from 
a  sale  of  the  real  estate  or  of  some  part  of  it. 

An  heir  is  not  bound  by  any  agreement  of  his 
ancestor  beyond  the  value  of  his  distributive 
share  of  the  estate,  but  if  the  personal  property 
is  insufficient  to  pay  the  debts  and  claims,  as 
well  as  any  special  bequest  where  the  decedent 
left  a  will,  the  heirs  must  allow  a  sale  of  a  suffi- 
cient part  of  the  real  estate  to  satisfy  all  such 
amounts.  In  the  event  of  such  sale  being  made 
the  administrator  or  executor  will  make  the 
deed  of  transfer  to  the  property  sold,  by  virtue 
of  an  order  from  the  probate  or  surrogate  court, 
first  obtained.  And  when  a  full  settlement  of 
the  estate  has  been  made  the  work  of  the  ad- 
ministrator is  finished  and  he  is  discharged  by 
the  court  from  further  obligation. 

What  lands  remain  may  be  divided  among 
the  heirs,  either  mutually  if  an  agreement  can 
be  made,  or  the  division  will  be  conducted  by 
the  court.  This  division  however  is  not  con- 
ducted by  the  same  court  wherein  the  estate 
was  settled,  but  by  what  is  usually  termed  the 
chancery  court.  Such  division  by  a  court  is  al- 
ways necessary  where  there  are  any  minor 
heirs,  because  they  are  incompetent  to  join  in  a 
voluntary  agreement  of  partition.  Whenever 
there  is  a  surviving  spouse  and  there  is  no  will 


ESTATES  INTESTATE.  219 

making  provision  for  the  benefit  of  such  sur- 
vivor, partition  proceedings  are  necessary  to 
set  apart  his  or  her  share,  unless  the  heirs  are 
all  of  age  and  a  private  agreement  can  be 
reached. 

When  the  suit  for  partition  is  had,  the  court 

will  appoint  a  commission  of  disinterested  men, 

usually  three,  to  inspect  the  lands  to 

partition       ^e  divided  and  if  possible  they  shall 

separate  the   estate   into   as   many 

shares  as  there    are  parties    interested;    they 

shall  then  assign  one  of  such  lots  to  each  of  the 

several  heirs  entitled,  whether  to  minor  or  not, 

and  the  lot  or  part  so  assigned  becomes  his  own 

separate  tract. 

If  the  whole  property,  or  any  part  of  it,  can- 
not be  divided  among  the  parties  entitled,  the 
three  commissioners  so  appointed  appraise  the 
value  of  the  real  estate  and  so  report  to  the 
court  and  a  decree  of  sale  is  entered  and  the 
master  in  chancery  of  the  court  makes  sale  of 
the  land.  The  money  received  therefrom,  after 
paying  costs,  is  divided  by  him  among  the  par- 
ties entitled  according  to  their  respective 
shares.  The  statute  of  each  state  declares  what 
the  share  shall  be.  ( See  your  statute  for  law  of 
descent.)  This  process  of  dividing  an  estate  by 
legal  process  must  be  done  strictly  in  accord- 
ance with  the  law  and  care  must  be  exercised 
in  the  course  of  the  same  throughout.  Parti- 


220         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

tion  proceedings  may  be  had  wherever  two  or 
more  persons  own  property  together,  regard- 
less of  how  they  acquired  title  to  the  land. 

When  a  married  person  dies,  the  surviving 
spouse  at  once  becomes  seized  of  an  interest  in 
all  the  real  estate  possessed  by  the  decedent  at 
the  time  of  his  or  her  death  and  in  any  owned 
after  marriage  of  parties  and  conveyed  by  the 
deceased  before  death,  if  the  said  survivor  had 
not  joined  in  a  deed  of  conveyance  prior  to  the 
death  of  the  other,  or  had  joined  in  a  defective 
conveyance,  which  was  not  sufficient 
to  release  dower.  This  interest  is 
called  a  dower  interest  and  in  most 
states  is  the  rent,  use,  and  profit  of  one-third  of 
all  such  real  estate  during  the  remaining  life 
of  the  said  survivor.  This  is  in  fact  a  right  for 
an  indeterminable  period  and  can  be  sold  or 
bartered ;  yet  it  ceases  immediately  on  the  death 
of  the  survivor.  Any  land  subject  to  a  dower 
interest  is  at  once  relieved  on  the  death  of  the 
person  to  whom  it  was  due  and  the  amount  of 
dower  in  each  state  is  regulated  by  the  state 
statute.  A  dower  interest,  however,  may  never 
vest  by  reason  of  a  valid  antenuptial  or  post- 
nuptial contract. 

Besides  the  interest  above  mentioned  there  is 
also  another  interest  but  of  a  definite  amount, 
usually  of  one  thousand  dollars,  called  a  home- 
stead. It  is  the  right  of  the  surviving  spouse 


ESTATES  INTESTATE.  221 

to  retain  during  life,  or  to  minor  children  to 
hold  during  minority,  the  home  place,  usually 
the  house  and  some  small  tract  of  land,  and  if 
the  estate  was  small  it  may  embrace  the  whole 
of  it  and  leave  nothing  to  be  sold  to  satisfy 
debts,  or  to  be  divided  among  the  heirs  until 
the  death  of  both  husband  and  wife.  This  is 
also  regulated  by  statute  of  the  state  wherein 
the  land  is  situated. 

When  no  provision  is  made  by  will  the  court 
may  assign  the  dower  interest  to  the  party  en- 
titled and  any  estate  sold  is  burdened  with  the 
same  unless  it  is  voluntarily  released  in  writing, 
or  separately  assigned  by  court. 

A  legal  dissolution  of  the  marriage  contract 
is  called  a  divorce  and  if  granted  for  the  fault 
of  the  surviving  spouse  it  will  dissolve  any 
claim  of  dower  in  the  estate. 

When  a  divorce  is  granted  if  it  is  stipulated 
that  either  pay  the  other  a  sum  of 
mone7  such  amount  is  called  ali- 
mony, whether  it  is  to  be  paid  at  one 
time  or  in  several  equal  amounts,  at  regular  in- 
tervals ;  and  alimony  is  a  lien  on  the  real  estate 
of  the  party  who  is  to  pay  it. 

Dower,  homestead  and  alimony,  all  cease  on 
the  death  of  the  party  in  whose  interest  they 
existed  and  any  real  estate  affected  by  either  of 
them  is  at  once  relieved  of  the  same.  Home- 


222         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

stead  rights  of  minor  orphans  cease  on  their 
becoming  of  legal  age. 

SUGGESTION. — Examine  your  abstract  and  see 
if  your  land  was  part  of  some  estate  that  had 
been  partitioned. 


CHAPTER  XXIII. 

WILLS — ESTATES  TESTATE. 

A  will  is  a  conveyance  of  property  by  an  in- 
dividual, the  transfer  to  take  effect  or  title  to 
pass,  at  the  death  of  the  grantor,  now  termed 
testator.  One  who  dies  leaving  a  will  is  said  to 
have  died  testate,  as  opposed  to  one  who  left 
no  will  and  who  is  said  to  have  died  intestate. 

As  to  who  may  make  wills,  the  rule  of  re- 
strictions is  more  lenient  than  it  is 
Who  can  jn  regard  to  who  may  make  con- 
wiii.  tracts.  In  the  making  of  a  will,  it 

is  considered  there  is  not  the  con- 
tention usual  in  coming  to  an  agreement  with 
another  as  in  contracts,  and  though  no  fixed 
rule  may  be  laid  down  the  law  is  not  so  strict. 
However  one  must  be  able  to  understand  what 
he  is  doing  and  not  be  working  under  some  de- 
lusion. Nor  must  a  will  be  executed  under  in- 
fluence, or  it  is  not  the  will  of  the  testator  and 
no  court  cognizant  of  this  fact  will  sustain  it. 

A  will  in  fact  being  the  offer  of  the  testator, 
may  be  by  him  revoked  at  any  time  before  his 
death,  or  he  may  destroy  it  altogether;  but  im- 
mediately on  the  occurrence  of  the  death  of  the 
testator,  the  will  becomes  absolute  and  title 

(223) 


224         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

passes  by  the  terms  of  the  instrument  and  not 
by  inheritance.  A  party  acquiring  property 
through  a  will  is  called  a  devisee  or  legatee  and 
takes  the  title  by  purchase. 

When  a  testator  dies  leaving  two  or  more 
wills  the  latest  dated  instrument  is  the  one  con- 
sidered as  the  real  will  at  least  insofar  as  it 
may  affect  the  disposal  of  property  in  a  former 
will.  Usually,  however,  in  place  of  writing  an 
entirely  new  instrument,  a  paragraph  or  more 
is  added  to  the  original  will,  and  such  para- 
graph when  so  written,  is  called  a  codicil.  One 
or  more  codicils  may  be  added  and  they  may 
dispose  of  additional  property  or  in  some  man- 
ner change  the  gifts  as  originally  written. 

If  a  testator  acquires  property  after  execut- 
ing a  will  and  it  was  not  provided  to  dispose 
of  after  acquired  property  in  the  will,  it  does 
not  pass  by  the  will  of  the  decedent,  but  is  in- 
herited by  his  heirs,  and  he  is  said  to  have  died 
intestate  as  to  that  particular  property.  Yet 
where  a  will  contains  a  last  para- 
The  graph  called  a  residuary  clause  de- 

rpsidiio.rv 

clause.  vising  "any  and  all  other  property 
not  herein  mentioned  or  any  prop- 
erty that  may  be  hereafter  acquired,"  or  to 
which  the  testator  may  be  entitled  by  contract, 
inheritance  or  devise  at  his  death,  to  some 
specified  person,  the  party  so  named  will  re- 
ceive all  and  any  such  as  there  might  be;  and 


WILLS — ESTATES  TESTATE.  225 

said  last  named  person  is  called  the  residuary 
legatee. 

A  will  is  usually  spoken  of  as  a  last  will  and 
testament,  the  term  testament  no  doubt  being 
preserved  from  the  Eoman  law.  There  is  no 
derivative  of  the  word  will,  it  standing  as  well 
for  the  verb  as  for  the  noun,  hence  it  is  reason- 
able to  retain  the  other  term  by  which  the  de- 
rivatives may  be  formed.  The  party  making  a 
will  is  a  testator ;  testatrix,  if  a  woman ;  the  gift 
is  a  testamentary  devise;  the  authority  of  the 
court  to  the  party  settling  the  estate,  letters 
testamentary,  etc.  The  gifts  disposed  of  by  a 
will  are  either  a  devise  or  a  legacy;  as  com- 
monly used  devise  is  of  land  and  legacy  is  of 
personal  property,  while  bequest  is  a  general 
term  applied  to  both.  A  recipient  of  a  devise 
is  known  as  a  devisee  and  one  who  receives  a 
legacy  is  a  legatee. 

Almost  any  interest  in  land  may  be  devised, 
the  entire  estate  or  any  part  thereof.  Thus  the 
income  for  a  number  of  years  may  be  given  to 
A.  or  it  may  be  left  to  him  during  his  lifetime, 
with  remainder  to  B.  or  to  the  children  of  A. 
Or  the  land  may  be  left  to  some  one  in  trust  to 
collect  the  income  and  pay  it  over  to  A.  during 
his  life  time  and  then  to  convey  it  to  another. 
The  simplest  conveyance  is  that  of  the  fee  un- 
restricted when  the  devisee  comes  at  once  into 
full  possession  of  the  entire  estate. 

15 


226         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

The  lands  of  a  testator  always  stand  bur- 
dened with  any  debts  he  may  have  owed  at  his 
death,  and  it  cannot  be  determined  until  a  set- 
tlement of  the  estate  is  had,  whether  or  not  the 
lands  may  be  divided  as  the  will  directs.  This 
settlement  of  the  estate  is  explained 
*n  ^ne  previous  chapter;  in  addition 
to  the  procedure  there  mentioned  a 
further  action  in  the  same  court  is  had  to  prove 
the  will.  This  is  known  as  probating  the  will,1 
and  is  in  fact  a  proving  of  the  following  points 
in  relation  thereto: 

1.  That  it  is  in  fact  the  identical  writing  or 
instrument  that  was  executed  as  the  last  will 
and  testament  of  the  decedent. 

2.  That  at  the  time  of  its  execution  the  testa- 
tor was  of  sound  mind  and  disposing  memory. 

3.  That  it  was  executed  without  fear  or  un- 
due influence  by  another. 

4.  That  the  testator  understood  the  instru- 
ment to  be  his  last  will  and  testament  at  the 
time  of  its  execution. 

The  above  proofs  are  obtained  from  the  evi- 
dence of  the  witnesses  to  the  will  testifying  in 
court;  or  if  one,  or  more,  of  the  witnesses  has 
died,  his  name  as  a  witness  is  proven  by  the 

L  In  some  states  the  court  having  in  charge  the  prov- 
ing of  wills  is  known  as  the  surrogate  court,  in  others  the 
probate  court,  in  still  others  the  county  court,  etc.,  as 
local  statutes  direct 


WILLS — ESTATES  TESTATE.  227 

testimony  of  others  who  may  know  the  hand 
writing  of  such  witness. 

When  a  will  has  been  thus  probated  or  proven 
the  executor  named  in  the  will  to  settle  the  es- 
tate, proceeds  to  collect  the  property  and  to  pay 
all  debts  of  the  testator.  If,  however,  the  exec- 
utor named,  executrix  if  a  woman,  declines  to 
act,  the  court  will  name  some  proper  person  to 
see  to  a  settlement  of  the  estate.2 

Aside  from  the  claims  of  persons  whom  the 
deceased  may  have  owed,  if  the  will  provides 
for  the  payment  of  specific  sums  of  money, 
these  legacies  must  be  paid  and  the  executor  is 
in  duty  bound  so  to  do.  If  there  is  not  sufficient 
money  or  personal  property  to  satisfy  all  debts, 
and  to  pay  all  the  legacies  mentioned,  it  will  be 
necessary  for  the  executor  to  sell  part  or  all  of 
the  land  in  order  to  meet  the  de- 

The  mands  of  debts  and  legacies.  Thus  it 

payments 

of  debts.  is  not  known  if  the  devise  of  a  tract 
of  land  will  be  accomplished  and  the 
devisee  will  receive  his  gift  until  after  the  es- 
tate is  settled  and  all  other  claims  are  paid. 
Whoever  takes  under  a  will,  takes  a  fee  the 
same  as  by  deed,  but  unlike  a  transfer  by  deed 
the  title  is  burdened  with  all  the  debts  and  obli- 

2.  Where  an  executor  named  in  a  will  to  settle  the 
estate,  declines  to  act  the  one  appointed  by  the  court  is 
called  Executor  cum  testamento  annexo  (executor  with 
will  annexed). 


228         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

gations  of  the  testator,  as  well  as  being  subject 
to  all  legacies  mentioned  in  the  will  itself.  What 
at  first  appeared  to  be  a  valuable  inheritance, 
may  be  entirely  dissipated  in  the  process  of  set- 
tlement of  the  estate. 

Where  a  devisee  or  legatee  dies  prior  to  the 
testator,  the  devise  returns  to  the  estate  of  such 
testator  and  does  not  descend  to  the  heirs  of  the 
devisee  except  it  is  so  specifically  stated  in  the 
will. 

Frequently  the  real  estate  devised  is  so  in- 
definitely described  that  the  separate  parts  can- 
not be  distinguished  or  identified,  in  which  case 
the  wish  of  the  testator  cannot  be  regarded, 
wherefore  the  property  must  be  treated  as  in- 
testate property  and  divided  among  the  heirs 
according  to  the  laws  of  descent  of  the  place 
where  the  property  is  located.  Or  by  a  misde- 
scription  the  land  intended  to  be  devised  to  one 
may  be  entirely  omitted,  in  which  case  this 
particular  devisee  must  have  deeds  from  all 
heirs  of  the  testator,  he  having  died  intestate 
as  to  this  tract  intended  to  be  conveyed. 

From  the  above  it  will  be  understood  that  the 

writing  of  wills  is  a  particular  task 

writ*?  Twin    an(^  snoul<l  not  be  entrusted  to  one 

not  skilled  in  the  art,  nor  to  one  not 

familiar  with  the  laws.    For  the  reason,  first, 

that  the  language  of  a  devise  must  be  exact,  that 

there  may  be  no  mistake  or  misunderstanding  of 


WILLS — ESTATES  TESTATE.  229 

the  wish  of  the  testator ; 3  second,  that  the  terms 
of  the  statute  may  be  strictly  complied  with. 

The  chief  essentials  of  a  valid  will  are  (1) 
that  it  must  be  in  writing;4  but  typewritten 
wills  are  accepted  when  signed  with  pen  or  pen- 
cil; (2)  it  must  be  signed  by  the  testator;  (3) 
it  must  be  acknowledged  by  the  testator  as  his 
will;  (4)  it  must  be  signed  by  witnesses  at  the 
request  of  the  testator.  The  observance  of 
these  formalities  as  well  as  the  selection  of 
proper  words  constituting  the  conveyances  are 
best  left  to  those  who  have  made  it  a  study  and 
not  to  the  novice. 

A  will  not  being  questioned  until  after  the 
death  of  the  testator,  when  he  is  unable  to  tes- 
tify as  to  his  intentions,  depends  alone  for  its 
execution  and  validity,  upon  its  language  and 
conformity  with  the  law.  And  if  attacked  its 
strength  rests  only  in  the  skill  of  the  attorney 
who  drafted  the  instrument. 

3.  Some  wills  are  oral  by  the  testator.    That  is,  in  case 
of  imminent  peril  of  death,  the   testator  may  call   upon 
witnesses   to   heed,   and   then   he   directs   the   disposal   of 
his  property  at  the  same  time  stating  it  is  his  will.     If 
he   dies   the   witnesses   reduce   the   directions   to   writing, 
and   such  a  will   is  known   as  a  nuncupative   will.     But 
death   must  follow   and   the   writing  must  be   done   in   a 
short  time.     If  he  recovers  or  if  the  writing  is  delayed 
the  will  is  defeated.     Local  statutes  also  govern. 

4.  A  will   entirely  written  by  the   testator   himself  is 
known  as  a  Holographic  Will.     In  many  states  such  wills 
are  valid  though  not  witnessed,  yet  local  statute  of  each 
state  will  govern. 


230         LAND  SUEVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

The  attack  against  the  provisions  of  a  will 
are  known  as  contesting  the  will,  and  such  suit 
may  be  brought  by  any  one  who  claims  an  in- 
terest in  the  estate.  The  form  of  attestation 
and  probate  of  a  will  are  dictated  by  the  statute 
of  each  separate  state  to  which  reference  must 
be  had  for  particulars,  but  it  is  the  general  rule 
that  a  will  must  be  witnessed  by  at  least  two 
persons,  neither  of  whom  is  in  any  manner  a 
beneficiary  under  the  terms  thereof. 

Whenever  a  will  is  probated  in  a  county  or 
state  foreign  to  the  one  wherein  the  land  is 
located,  duly  certified  copies  of  such  will  and 
the  probate  proceeding  should  be  filed  in  the 
local  county.  A  will  once  probated  must  remain 
in  the  office  of  the  clerk  of  the  court  where  such 
proceedings  were  had,  and  copies  only  may  be 
transmitted  elsewhere.5 

SUGGESTION. — Have  some  good  and  experi- 
enced attorney  prepare  your  will  now.  If  at 
any  future  time  you  desire  to  change  it  you  may 
do  so  by  merely  adding  a  codicil.  And  do  not 
encumber  lands  by  devising  property  to  the 
second  generation. 

5.  It  is  a  very  serious  offense  to  destroy  another's  will 
after  his  death,  though  all  property  is  left  to  the  party 
who  destroys  it.  In  most  states  it  is  a  penal  offense  be- 
cause the  court  desires  an  exhibition,  or  probate,  of  the 
will  in  order  to  show  its  provisions,  and  if  the  will  is 
destroyed  it  will  so  embarrass  the  title  to  a  property  that 
a  costly  suit  is  required  to  readjust  conditions.  After- 
wards, if  the  beneficiary  desires  the  gifts  to  go  to  others 
he  may  so  transfer  them  by  deed. 


CHAPTER  XXIV. 

JUDICIAL,   SALES. 

In  a  preceding  chapter  it  was  explained  con- 
cerning the  sale  of  lands  when  it  was  not  prac- 
tical to  make  a  division  of  the  same  among  the 
several  owners.  While  such  a  sale  was  by  or- 
der of  the  court,  it  was,  however,  a  friendly  pro- 
ceeding and  no  opposition  was  urged.  The  con- 
veyances herein  discussed  are  likewise  had  by 
process  of  the  court  but  the  action  is  brought  be- 
cause the  owner  has  become  delinquent  in  some 
agreement  or  obligation  and  the  sale  of  his 
property  and  the  transfer  thereof,  is  made 
against  his  will. 

It  is  a  rule  at  law,  as  well  as  a  moral  rule, 
that  every  one  should  pay  his  debts;  and  if 
he  is  able  so  to  do  the  law  requires  that  it  must 
be  done. 

Such  an  instance  arises  where  a  debt  is  ow- 
ing and  remains  unpaid  after  the  due  date.  The 
debt  may  be  evidenced  by  note  and  the  note  se- 
cured by  a  mortgage  or  trust  deed  regularly 
recorded.  If  in  either  event  the  debt  cannot  be 
collected  and  the  debtor  has  property,  the  cred- 
itor may  bring  a  suit  against  the  debtor  for 
such  payment.  If  the  suit  is  successful,  and  the 

(231) 


232         LAND  SUEVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

shOTijTs  claim  allowed,  a  judgment  is  entered 
debt  against  the  debtor,  which  becomes 

a  lien  on  his  property.  In  due 
course  the  proper  officer  of  the  court  makes  a 
levy  on  the  property  and, advertises  it  for  sale 
at  public  auction.  On  the  day  named  the  officer 
makes  sale  of  the  property  and  executes  a  con- 
veyance therefor  to  the  highest  bidder,  who 
bought  it.  In  some  states  the  former  owner  has 
a  right  to  come  within  some  later  period  and 
by  payment  of  the  debt,  interest  and  costs,  he 
redeems  his  property  and  receives  it  back  again 
as  discussed  in  the  chapter  on  mortgages. 

If  the  debt  had  been  secured  by  a  pledge  or 
mortgage,  and  a  sale  occurs,  the  process  is 
known  as  a  foreclosure  of  the  mortgage.  But 
if  there  has  been  no  mortgage  and  the  debtor 
had  made  no  pledge  of  his  property,  not  all  of 
it  could  be  sold,  as  the  law  allows  a  certain 
amount  to  be  set  off  and  exempt  from  forced 
sale.  Usually  the  tools  of  a  mechanic,  the  home 
and  household  goods  of  a  married  man,  are  so 
reserved,  but  the  local  statute  must  be  consulted 
in  every  instance  to  determine  what  amount  is 
allowed  in  each  state. 

When  such  sale  is  made  the  money  received 
therefor,  is  applied  first  to  the  payment  of  the 
cost  of  sale  including  court  costs  and  attorney's 
fee;  next  the  debt  and  interest  is  paid  and  if 
any  surplus  remains  it  will  be  paid  to  the  for- 
mer owner  of  the  property. 


JUDICIAL  SALES.  233 

An  owner  of  a  property  must  also  pay  the 

taxes  levied  against  the  same,  or  his  property 

will  be  sold  by  proper  officer  to  some  one  who 

bids  enough  to  pay  the  tax  assessed. 

An  owner      jf  the  owner  does  not  redeem  the 

must  pay 

his  taxes.  same  within  a  stated  time,  the  pur- 
chaser receives  a  deed  and  under 
certain  conditions  he  takes  possession  of  the 
premises.  But  to  redeem  the  property  requires 
the  payment  of  the  original  tax,  the  costs  of 
sale,  the  interest  and  often  a  penalty  of  double 
the  original  tax. 

Any  purchaser  of  a  property  is  bound  to  take 
notice  of  all  such  conveyances  or  outstanding 
interests,  as  well  as  of  any  suit  in  court  pend- 
ing against  his  grantor.  While  a  purchaser 
may  receive  a  warranty  deed,  the  seller  may 
spend  his  money  as  soon  as  received  and  the 
warranty  be  valueless. 

Hence  the  great  necessity  of  having  an  ab- 
stract of  title  in  order  to  determine  the  exact 
condition  of  the  title  before  payment  is  made. 
A  purchaser  takes  a  property  burdened  with  all 
liens,  encumbrances  and  outstanding  interests 
and  it  is  no  defense  that  he  had  no  knowledge  of 
them.  The  property  stands  good  for 
The  any  such  and  it  should  be  the  rule  to 

purchaser 

must  know,    never  accept  a  property  for  purchase 

or  for  a  pledge  of  loan  without  an 

abstract  to  show  the  condition  of  the  title  down 


234         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

to  the  latest  possible  date.  Such  timely  pre- 
caution has  often  saved  the  loss  of  a  life  time 
saving  and  it  is  the  duty  of  the  seller  or  bor- 
rower to  furnish  such  evidence  of  title  to  his 
purchaser  or  creditor  in  order  that  there  may 
be  no  mistake  or  fraud. 

SUGGESTION. — Review  the  ten  stories  in  part 
one  of  this  volume,  then  visit  your  abstractor 
and  ask  him  if  there  is  any  tax  deed  against 
your  property.  Also  ask  him  if  any  losses  have 
occurred  in  your  county  on  account  of  the  con- 
ditions named  above. 


CHAPTER  XXV. 

LEASEHOLDS  AND  MINOR  ESTATES. 

In  previous  chapters  the  interest  discussed 
was  of  such  nature  that  it  could  be  sold  or 
passed  by  inheritance ;  it  was  in  fact  that  inter- 
est known  as  the  fee.  A  leasehold  is  a  contract 
for  the  mere  possession  and  profits  of  a  prop- 
erty for  a  time,  the  original  owner 
f St9athan  retaining  all  his  interest  of  proprie- 
a  fee.  torship.  And  the  fact  of  him  having 

leased  his  property  does  not  prevent 
him  from  selling  it,  devising  it  by  will,  or  mort- 
gaging it,  during  the  time  of  the  lease,  except 
that  such  conveyance  is  subject  to  the  rights  of 
the  lessee. 

Thus  it  will  be  understood  that  a  leasehold 
is  a  minor  estate  and  expires  by  its  own  limi- 
tations. The  estate  conveyed  by  a  lease  is  per- 
sonal and  it  is  often  spoken  of  as  chattels  real. 
The  party  owning  the  property  and  letting  it  to 
another  is  known  as  the  landlord  and  the  party 
renting  is  called  the  tenant. 

The  rights,  duties  and  privileges  of  a  tenant 
under  a  lease  are  set  out  in  his  contract  of  lease, 
and  he  cannot  contract  the  premises  to  another 

(235) 


236         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

without  the  consent  of  his  landlord. 
The  lease. 

The  reward  a  tenant  pays  for  the  use 
of  a  property,  whether  it  be  grain  or  money 
is  known  as  rent  and  a  lease  usually  provides 
for  a  forfeiture  of  the  contract  in  default  of 
such  payment  when  due. 

A  lease  of  land  for  more  than  one  year  at  a 
time  must  be  in  writing,  or  the  parties  will  not 
be  bound.  There  is  also  a  time  limit  put  on 
leases  in  most  states  to  avoid  a  perpetuity,  but 
frequently  a  lease  is  entered  into  for  ninety- 
nine  years.  When  thus  executed,  during  the 
early  life  of  the  lease,  the  leasehold  estate  may 
be  more  valuable  than  the  fee.  When  such  an 
extended  time  is  granted,  it  is  understood  that 
the  tenant  will  make  valuable  improvements 
and  he  must  have  a  sufficient  time  in  which  his 
profits  may  pay  for  such  investments.  It  is 
also  understood  that  a  tenant  will  deliver  up 
the  property  rented  at  the  expiration  of  his 
term,  in  as  good  condition  as  when  he  received 
it,  usual  wear  excepted.  Yet  if  by  fire  through 
no  fault  of  his,  or  by  storm,  the  premises  are 
damaged,  he  will  not  be  held  for  damages. 

A  party  purchasing  a  property  should  always 

ascertain  the  rights  of  any  one  in  possession  of 

all  or  any  part  of  the  property,  as  the  purchaser 

is  bound  to  take  notice  of  any  rights 

Rights  of      or  title  that  the  person  occupying  the 
those  in         ,       ,  .  r  _,          .     ,,  ,  ,. 

possession,    land  may  have.     Though  the  public 

records  are  the  indexes  to  ownership 


LEASE  HOLDS  AND  MINOB  ESTATES.        237 

if  a  party  omits  to  record  any  deed  or  other 
interest  he  has  in  the  land,  he  does  so  at  his  own 
peril.  If  a  tenant  has  a  lease  for  a  term  of 
years  it  should  be  recorded  to  protect  him 
against  any  sale  in  which  his  rights  may  not  be 
regarded. 

Closely  allied  to  leaseholds  of  the  surface  is 
that  contract  or  lease  of  the  subsurface  or  lower 
parts  of  the  earth's  crust  for  development  and 
mutual  profit.  Such  are  the  lease  of  land  for 
developments  in  coal,  oil,  gas  or  other  sources  of 
wealth  within  the  earth. 

A  contract  for  oil  and  gas  generally  provides 
that  the  lessee  who  is  also  the  promoter,  will 
sink  his  own  wells,  take  care  of  his  own  product 
without  injury  to  the  surface  crops  or  improve- 
ments of  the  owner,  and  pay  such  owner  of  the 
land  a  certain  part  of  the  returns  together  with 
a  fixed  sum  per  acre.  Where  the  field  is  aban- 
doned the  rights  of  the  lessee  terminate  though 
it  is  most  advisable  for  the  land  owner  to  have 
a  regularly  executed  release  to  clear  his  title. 

Coal  or  mineral  lease  contracts  are  usually 
more  important  because  herein  it  is  understood 
that  the  party  purchases  a  fee  in  the  under 
strata  with  the  privilege  of  removal  of  the  same 
as  it  may  prove  profitable  to  him  so  to  do.  This 
removal  may  and  often  does,  cause 

c.°^  a  loss  to  the  surface  part,  by  a  re- 

nghts.  * 

moval  of  the  supporting  under  vein 

of  coal,  the  "top"  settles  down,  at  times  caus- 


238         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

ing  ponds  to  appear  or  it  may  injure  the  build- 
ings. Again  when  a  sale  of  mineral  strata  has 
been  made  the  next  succeeding  deed  for  the  top 
is  frequently  worthless  as  it  is  usually  drawn 
to  convey  the  surface  only  of  a  certain  tract  of 
land.  Now  in  fact  a  surface  only  has  no  depth 
and  trouble  might  easily  arise.  Tops  are  often 
valuable  as  ever  if  the  mineral  vein  removed 
is  of  sufficient  depth  that  no  sinking  will  occur. 
But  in  purchasing  top  be  careful  to  see  that  you 
get  a  surface  of  some  depth,  and  never  take  a 
deed  conveying  the  surface  only. 

Another  form  of  quasi-title  is  what  is  known 
as  easements  and  these  are  usually  the  right 
of  use  for  passage.  It  may  be  a  contract  for  a 
roadway  across  a  field,  a  privilege  to  establish 
and  maintain  a  drain,  a  right  to  use  in  common 
a  stair  or  hallway;  or  it  may  be  the  privilege 

of  using  a  wall  or  side  of  one  build- 
Easements.    .  ..   .  . 

ing  to  attach  another  building,  or  it 

may  be  the  privilege  of  using  a  well  or  cistern 
in  common.  Such  rights  and  privileges  are  per- 
sonal in  their  nature  but  restrict  the  absolute 
enjoyment  of  the  real  estate  they  affect.  They 
may  run  with  the  land  but  the  contract  itself 
must  be  examined  to  determine,  and  in  purchas- 
ing a  property  easements  are  to  be  considered 
either  as  liens  or  encumbrances,  or  as  benefits, 
owing  to  which  property  is  affected. 

Another  interest  is  acquired  by  a  bond  for  a 
deed.  This  is  in  fact  a  contract  of  purchase 


LEASE  HOLDS  AND  MINOB  ESTATES.        239 

and  sale  providing  if  certain  conditions  are  ac- 
complished and  the  specified  payments  are 
made,  the  owner  will  then  execute  a  deed  to 
the  property.  But  if  default  is  made  in  the 
payments,  the  bond  is  forfeited,  the  seller  is  re- 
lieved and  the  amounts  paid  are  lost.  A  full 
release  of  the  bond  should  be  had  in  order  to 
relieve  the  title  of  the  cloud  or  presumptive 
right  of  the  purchaser. 

Unreleased  mortgages  though  long  since  paid ; 
forfeited  contracts  though  not  released;  ease- 
ments no  longer  enjoyed  though  perhaps  con- 
veyed ;  these  are  known  as  defects  in 
H!0^?,  on     a  title  and  are  commonly  spoken  of 

the  title.  ' 

as  flaws.  If  an  owner  of  any  of  these 
privileges  also  acquires  the  fee,  the  title  is  said 
to  clear  by  fact  of  the  two  interests  merging 
into  one  ownership. 

Purchasers  of  property  should  be  sure  of  the 
title  they  are  getting  before  making  settlement, 
because  no  one  wants  to  buy  a  lawsuit.  Every 
outstanding  interest  should  be  acquired  and 
there  should  be  no  omission,  real  or  apparent 
that  is  not  explained.  Timely  precaution  saves 
worry,  costs  and  losses. 

SUGGESTION. — Have  some  good  lawyer  exam- 
ine your  abstract  to  determine  if  there  are  any 
clouds  on  your  title;  if  you  own  more  than  the 
surface  only;  if  all  mortgages  have  been  re- 
leased; if  no  one  in  possession  has  an  adverse 
claim. 


CHAPTER  XXVL 

ADVERSE   TITLES. 

Much  has  been  said  concerning  the  conditions 
of  a  title  but  here  is  introduced  a  title  akin  to 
that  studied  in  previous  chapters  though  it  is 
one  opposed  to  it. 

Adverse  titles  may  arise  from  different 
sources  and  their  real  value  will  rest  on  the 
validity  of  their  origin.  One  of  the  most  com- 
mon forms  is  that  title  acquired  through  the 
negligence  of  the  real  owner  and  his  omitting 
to  pay  the  taxes  on  his  property.  Taxes  are 
said  to  be  sure  as  death,  and  the  tax  collector 
can  be  no  respecter  of  persons. 

If  an  owner  by  negligence  or  oversight  omits 
to  pay  his  tax,  after  a  reasonable  time  has 
elapsed,  the  county  collector  of  taxes  on  a  day 
advertised,  will  offer  the  property  for  sale. 
Some  one  who  bids  it  in,  pays  the  tax  and  re- 
ceives a  certificate  of  purchase,  which  if  the 
owner  does  not  redeem  in  a  spec- 
ified time,  will  entitle  the  holder 
to  a  deed.  This  tax  deed  when  issued  in 
conformity  to  law  will  give  the  grantee  there- 
in named  an  adverse  title  to  the  premises  and 
if  he  is  disposed  to  push  his  claim  and  can 

(240) 


ADVERSE  TITLES.  241 

find  the  property  unoccupied,  he  can  establish 
his  claim  paramount  to  that  of  the  former  owner. 
More  frequently  tax  titles  are  considered  only 
as  a  cloud  on  the  title  and  no  great  importance 
is  attached  to  their  existence.  It  is  well,  how- 
ever, for  the  owner  of  the  fee  to  acquire  the 
interest  of  the  holder  of  a  tax  title,  by  a  quit 
claim  deed,  and  trouble  is  then  averted  for  all 
time. 

Any  interest,  real  or  apparent  outstanding  or 
held  by  another  than  the  owner  of  the  fee  is  con- 
sidered an  adverse  interest  and  should  be  ac- 
quired. 

Adverse  title  arises  some  times  by  error  in 
description  when  a  property  is  conveyed.  A. 
may  mortgage  or  deed  to  B.  a  farm  or  lot,  and 
by  mistake  of  the  scrivener,  the  mortgage  or 
deed  may  in  fact  omit  the  property  intended 
to  be  conveyed  to  B.  and  may  describe  the  home 
of  C.  The  error  may  be  discovered,  and  A.  may 
execute  a  new  deed  to  B.  to  correct  the  error, 
but  B.  will  also  have  a  conveyance,  for  the  home 
of  C.,  by  adverse  title.  B.  may  relieve  the  situ- 
ation by  executing  a  quit  claim  deed  to  C.  and 
conditions  will  again  be  adjusted. 

Adverse  possession  is  a  matter  of  graver  im- 
portance than  adverse  title  and  must  be  scru- 
tinized with  more  care  by  those  interested  in  a 
property.  The  statutes  of  the  several  states 
provide  that  if  a  party  holds  possession  of  a 

16 


242         LAND  SUBVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

property  for  a  specified  time  ranging  usually 

from  ten  to  twenty  years,  that  he  has  proved 

his  title  by  adverse  possession  and  this  law  so 

governing  the  right  is  called  the  Stat- 

Adverse  ute  of  Limitations.  The  law,  how- 
pOBsession. 

ever,  makes  certain  provisions  as  to 

how  the  possession  must  begin,  and  it  also  re- 
quires that  it  must  be  open  to  the  world,  con- 
tinuous, and  that  the  adverse  claimant  must  pay 
the  taxes,  etc.  While  the  term  must  be  com- 
plete, it  is  not  necessary  that  one  man  alone 
must  remain  the  full  time;  he  may  sell  to  a 
second  and  he  to  a  third  or  even  more,  but  the 
entire  time  of  adverse  possession  must  equal 
the  term  set  by  the  statute. 

The  law  also  requires  that  the  term  shall  be- 
gin when  some  one  has  acquired  a  color  of  title 
by  deed,  contract  or  otherwise  and  that  if  the 
first  taker  takes  by  lease  or  by  any  friendly 
act  from  the  real  owner  the  possession  will  not 
ripen  into  adverse  even  though  prolonged  be- 
yond the  required  period. 

It  is  also  a  fact  that  the  law  or  limitations 
will  not  run  against  those  under  legal  disability 
such  as  minors,  lunatics,  etc.,  until  a  reasonable 
time  after  their  disability  is  removed.  It  is  a 
frequent  report  that  because  a  man  has  owned 
a  property  for  more  than  twenty  years  he  has 
a  good  title  and  can  make  a  good  deed.  Do  not 
be  deluded  by  any  such  rule  because  the  excep- 


ADVERSE  TITLES.  243 

tion  may  prove  the  contrary.1  The  statutes  of 
the  state  not  only  provide  a  time  for  a  pos- 
session to  ripen  a  title  but  it  further  provides 
a  method  of  proving  the  same  by  a  decree  of 
court.  The  suit  brought  to  supply  missing  links 
and  to  cure  deficiencies  is  called  a  suit  to  quiet 
title  and  operates  on  the  theory  that 


Suiet  Utle       ^  &  ^^  *S  Se*  ^OI*  a  Party  ^°  come 

into  court  and  enter  his  claim  and 


1.  An  incident  coming  to  the  attention  of  the  author 
disproves  the  infallibility  of  the  rule  of  statute  of  limi- 
tations making  good  a  title.  A.  living  at  a  distance  from 
his  property  leased  his  farm  to  B.  Soon  afterward  A. 
was  committed  to  the  hospital  for  insane  of  his  native 
state.  At  this  time  he  was  a  bachelor  and  having  been 
somewhat  of  a  recluse  little  was  known  of  his  business 
and  his  conservator  overlooked  his  ownership  of  the  farm. 
He  was  about  thirty  years  old  when  committed  and  lived 
to  the  extreme  age  of  ninety  years.  At  his  death  he  left 
surviving  him  a  nephew  C.,  his  sole  heir,  who  was  then 
a  mere  boy  of  some  ten  years  old.  Counting  sixty  years 
of  commitment  and  eleven  for  the  nephew  to  attain  his 
majority  makes  seventy-one  years  that  the  farm  was  in 
adverse  possession  of  strangers. 

B.  after  living  on  the  farm  a  few  years,  and  assuming 
ownership,  sold  and  conveyed  it  to  D.,  who  in  turn  deeded 
it  to  E.,  and  so  it  was  transferred  several  times  until  the 
last  owner  H.  had  lived  on  it  thirty  years  himself. 

C.,  on  coming  of  age,  by  some  means  discovered  his 
inheritance  and  much  to  the  last  owner's  surprise,  de- 
manded a  surrender  of  the  property.  By  decree  of  the 
supreme  court  of  the  state  H.  was  deprived  of  his  prop- 
erty and  it  was  restored  to  C.,  the  legal  heir  of  A. 

Thus  does  the  exception  disprove  the  rule,  that  "twenty 
years'  positive  possession  proves  a  good  title." 


244         LAND  SUEVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

he  fails  so  to  do,  by  decree  of  court  he  is  then 
barred  from  ever  after  appearing  to  annoy  the 
owner  of  the  property  and  the  title  is  freed  from 
any  claim  he  may  have. 

The  suit  however,  to  become  absolutely  ef- 
fective must  be  conducted  strictly  in  accordance 
with  the  statute  and  an  owner  of  a  property 
who  has  such  a  suit  instituted  in  his  behalf  can- 
not be  too  careful  in  selecting  his  attorney  to 
conduct  the  case. 

As  in  the  payment  of  taxes  an  owner  of  a 
property  must  also  pay  any  bill  he  may  contract 
for  improvements.  If  he  purchases  material 
for  any  improvement  on  his  place  or  hires  any 
one  to  construct  any  building  or  other  improve- 
ment, he  is  not  only  personally  lia- 
Mechanic's  j^  tmt  }£$  property  is  also  liable  for 
the  payment  of  the  account.  And  if 
the  debt  is  not  paid  promptly  the  materialman 
or  the  mechanic  and  laborer  may  file  a  lien 
against  his  place  and  such  lien  is  known  as  a 
mechanic's  lien.  This  lien  must  be  filed  within 
a  reasonable  time  after  the  account  is  due  and 
then  if  it  is  not  prosecuted  it  will  die.  The  local 
statute  governs  the  conditions  and  must  be  con- 
sulted for  particulars. 

There  are  many  conditions  arising  that  might 
occasion  questions  as  to  the  validity  of  a  title 
and  the  examiner  is  often  driven  to  pass  some 


ADVERSE  TITLES.  245 

owing  to  the  remote  probability  being  sufficient 
to  outweigh  the  bare  possibility  of  contention. 

SUGGESTION. — Examine  your  abstract  and  de- 
termine if  there  is  any  missing  link.  If  so, 
spare  no  pains  to  supply  it  by  affidavit,  quit- 
claim deed  or  suit  at  law. 


CHAPTER  XXVH. 

LAND  VALUES  AND  THEIR  INCREASE. 

"I  tell  you,  young  man,  no  investment  on 
earth  is  so  safe,  so  sure,  so  certain,  to  enrich 
its  owner  as  real  estate." — Cleveland. 

The  soil  is  the  basis  of  all  wealth,  as  it  is 
also  the  source  and  the  agent  by  means  of  which 
the  necessities  of  the  human  race  must  be  satis- 
fied. 

The  inhabitants  of  the  earth  are  dependent  on 

it  and  on  it  alone  for  their  existence  in  every 

particular,   either   directly   or  indi- 

The  earth     rectlv.    With  the  greater  organized 

and   its  ° 

fullness.  agencies  of  political  life  the  fact  that 
each  individual  must  look  to  mother 
earth  for  his  every  physical  comfort,  grows 
more  remote,  until  at  times  it  seems  to  be  for- 
gotten. 

To  begin  the  investigation  let  the  hypothesis 
assume  a  single  family  living  in  a  remote  dis- 
trict, removed  from  the  present  enjoyment  of 
diversified  labor  and  special  trades. 

Here,  then,  Crusoe  like,  the  earth  and  the 
fullness  thereof  supports  the  family  individually 
and  collectively.  As  times  weaves  the  mantel 
of  years  and  the  population  of  the  district  in- 

(246) 


LAND  VALUES  AND  THEIB  INCREASE.     247 

creases,  the  natural  products  will  no  longer 
support  the  community  in  indolence.  Effort 
must  be  put  forth  to  assist  nature  ever  ready 
to  respond  to  man's  influences  and  to  yield  to 
his  labor. 

Were  the  district  a  swamp  region,  drainage 
must  be  established  to  bring  waste  acres  under 
cultivation  to  provide  added  returns.  Were  it 
a  desert  tract,  irrigation  systems  must  be 
erected  and  maintained  for  a  like  purpose.  To 
accomplish  this  end  certain  individuals  are  as- 
signed the  task  of  effecting  the  plan  of  drain- 
age, and  they  are  relieved  of  the  labor  of  crop 
production  in  return  therefor.  But  were  it  not 
for  the  returns  from  the  soil  those  first  removed 
from  direct  labor  in  immediate  contact  with 
the  earth,  could  not  be  supported. 

Natural  abilities  of  the  individual  will  also 
segregate  him  to  do  certain  fixed  tasks  and  one 
will  make  the  shoes  of  many  because  he  can  do 
it  better  and  because  he  prefers  this  task  to 
other  labor. 

The  colony  grows  and  extends  over  more  ter- 
ritory; individuals  desire  to  communicate  or 
visit  relatives  and  friends  who  live  at  remote 
distances  of  the  district.  Post  roads  at  first, 
then  the  railroad,  telegraph,  telephone,  mail 
and  other  means  of  communication 
Jhe,  A  are  established.  Each  department 

development 

of  trades,      demands  a  set  of  operatives  to  erect 
and  maintain  it,  to  carry  product  and 


LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 


communications  from  one  to  another.  Each  de- 
partment requires  the  selection,  adjustment  and 
transportation  of  some  natural  resource  of  the 
earth  to  establish  the  physical  equipment. 

Forests  must  be  felled,  trees  be  converted  in- 
to lumber,  lumber  shaped  into  suitable  sizes  and 
conditions  to  produce  buildings,  etc.  Minerals 
must  be  mined,  milled,  smelted  and  moulded  to 
the  necessary  materials  used  in  connection  with 
the  wooden  products. 

Coal,  oil  or  gas  must  be  had  and  controlled 
to  enable  the  workers  to  mould  the  metals,  to 
shape  machinery  that  the  feeble  physical  ef- 
forts of  man  may  be  multiplied  to  accomplish 
the  feats  of  power  displayed  in  our  engines  and 
machines.  Others  are  busy  constructing  ma- 
chines to  harness  the  power  of  the  waterfall  or 
energy  of  the  wind  and  wave,  in  order  that  this 
too  may  be  applied  to  the  individual  need  or 
comfort  of  man. 

And  mother  earth  grows  the  forests;  she 
yields  the  metal  and  the  fuel;  from  her  is  de- 
rived that  fount  of  electricity  so  powerful  in 
its  action.  And  whether  it  is  a  field,  a  fount, 
a  mine  or  a  waterfall  that  is  possessed,  it  is 
the  real  source  of  all  human  existence. 

This  volume  has  much  to  do  with  the  idea  of 
an  agricultural  ownership,  though  the  absolute 
ownership  and  rules  governing  titles  apply  as 
well  to  business  lots,  to  subsurface  areas,  etc., 
as  to  the  cultivated  fields. 


LAND  VALUES  AND  THEIR  INCREASE.     249 

The  plains,  valleys,  forests  and  prairies  in 
their  natural  condition  are  valuable  for  their 
potential  wealth,  but  with  the  development  of 
civilization  and  the  immense  increase  in  popula- 
tion, places  and  points  of  agricultural  impor- 
tance increase  in  value  not  only  on  account  of 
productivity  of  crops  but  as  well  on  account  of 
some  stragetic  position  with  reference  to  the 
exchange  of  trade. 

Forests  yield  immense  wealth  in  the  first  har- 
vest of  the  lumber  and  in  later  years  the  hills 
and  mountains  are  replanted  to  trees,  that  their 
value  will  continue  in  the  returning  yields  of 
commercial  timber  which  time  will  soon  pro- 
duce. At  this  writing  the  government  has  un- 
der way  the  removal  and  reforesting  of  the  Kai- 
bah  National  forest  in  northern  Arizona,  which 
contemplates  a  contract  covering  twenty-five 
years.  Or  when  the  first  fortune  in  timber  is 
harvested  the  land  is  cleared  and  then  as  with 
the  prairies,  the  soil  produces  countless  fortunes 
in  grains  and  other  crops  aided  by  the  agri- 
culturist. The  term  agriculturist  is  employed 
to  represent  the  farmer,  the  fruit  grower,  the 
horticulturist  and  the  ranchman,  etc. ;  those  who 
harvest  their  income  from  the  annual  crop  of 
the  soil  both  directly  and  indirectly. 

The  farmer  by  scientific  management  and 
prudent  care  of  his  soil  and  seed  is  able  to  reap 
a  return  that  creates  a  value  of  one  thousand 


250         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

dollars  per  acre  in  his  farm.    This  is  not  alone 

in  planting  one  crop  of  corn  after 

The  farm      another,  but  by  a  proper  rotation  of 

our  greatest  crops,  with  the  correct  fertilization 
wealth. 

of  soil  and  right  conditions  of  feed- 
ing and  marketing.  By  such  a  process  aban- 
doned farms  of  New  England,  impoverished  by 
abuse  and  theft  of  soil  elements,  are  being  re- 
claimed, and  children  of  those  who  left  im- 
proved homesteads  for  pioneer  life  on  more  vir- 
gin soil,  are  returning  and  rehabitating  the  de- 
serted places.  With  the  aid  of  science  at  his 
command  the  young  man  is  going  East  to  ' '  grow 
up  with  the  country." 

Horticulture  has  perhaps  produced  the  most 
intensive  farming  and  returned  the  greatest 
profits  from  the  smallest  area.  Within  the  past 
month  a  man  in  California  has  had  one  pear 
tree  insured  for  thirty  thousand  dollars,  basing 
its  value  on  the  crop  returns  for  the  past  few 
years.  This  tree  alone,  it  is  claimed,  yields  its 
owner  over  four  thousand  dollars  per  annum. 

The  possibilities  of  agriculture  are  yet  so  un- 
developed that  no  prophesy  can  foretell  what 
return  of  effort  or  what  per  cent  of  income, 
science  and  intelligence  will  soon  produce  for 
the  investment  in  land  and  the  effort  in  tilling 
the  soil. 

In  addition  to  the  fortunes  harvested  from  the 
surface  of  the  earth,  there  is  untold  wealth 


LAND  VALUES  AND  THEIR  INCREASE.     251 

hidden  beneath,  awaiting  when  the  ingenuity  of 
man  will  bring  it  forth  for  active  use. 

Much  has  been  done  to  develop  the  subsur- 
face in  many  sections  and  millions  have  been 
produced  from  the  mines.  Gold  has  been  per- 
haps the  most  common  form  of  ready  and  profit- 
able return  in  the  United  States.  And  the  first 
gold  discovered  in  California  was  found  within 
an  old  millrace,  in  a  section  of  little  value  be- 
fore the  discovery. 

Coal  deposits  in  the  varying  forms  and  kinds 
have  paid  fortunes  untold  into  the  hands  of  its 
promoters.  Copper  mines  have  produced  im- 
mense fortunes ;  zinc,  lead,  iron  and  other  metals 
return  millions  every  year.  Oil  and  gas  have 
given  unmeasured  wealth  for  many  years  and 
all  of  these  have  come  from  mother  Earth.  Ap- 
parently unproductive  clay  hills  have  been  the 
fount  from  whence  millions  in  oil  have  been 
secured. 

There  is  living  in  the  author's  home  town  a 
man  who  some  years  ago  refused  to  exchange 
a  team  of  ponies  for  an  eighty-acre  farm  cor- 
nering on  what  is  now  State  street,  in  the  city 
of  Chicago.  Any  of  those  single  acres  would 
today  yield  him  an  independent  income  and  not 
from  its  surface  productions  nor  on  account  of 
its  mines  of  mineral  wealth,  but  only  because 
it  is  so  situated  that  it  is  needed  to  serve  as  a 
place  of  assembly  in  one  of  the  most  famous 
commercial  marts  of  the  world. 


252         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

A  short  time  ago  no  one  placed  any  value  on 
the  sand  dunes  about  the  southern  shore  of 
Lake  Michigan.  Yet  almost  in  a  night  a  city 
grew,  giant  furnaces  appeared  until  now  the 
value  of  a  main  corner  in  the  city  of  Gary  is 
valued  at  enough  to  measure  many  a  fortune. 

Thus  is  the  value  of  the  earth  unmeasured  and 
the  wealth  in  possessing  a  part  of  it  unknown. 
Surface  returns  of  vegetable  life,  subsurface 
yield  of  minerals  or  stragetic  position  of  loca- 
tion, either  one  has  possibilities  which  the  fu- 
ture alone  will  determine. 

SUGGESTION. — Eead  again  what  Beecher  and 
Cleveland  said.  If  you  own  no  real  estate, 
begin  today  to  save  for  it.  Visit  the  office  of 
your  savings  bank  or  building  and  loan  associa- 
tion, open  an  account  with  it,  and  ere  long  you 
can  buy  a  home. 


CHAPTER  XXVIII. 

CERTIFICATES   OP   TITLE  AND   TITLE  INSURANCE 
POLICIES. 

In  Chapter  XIII  the  abstract  of  title  was 
explained  so  the  reader  understands  what  it  is, 
how  it  is  compiled  and  what  purpose  it  serves. 

But,  being  only  a  condensed  exhibit  of  the 
records  it  does  not  pretend  to  explain  the  con- 
dition of  the  title  nor  will  it  in  itself  protect  a 
purchaser  from  any  defects  that  might  exist. 
Its  validity  and  value  lie  in  it  being  a  true  epit- 
ome of  what  is  of  record  that  in  any  way  will 
affect  the  title  to  the  property  under 
Value  consideration.  Unless  one  is  able  to 

abstract.  read  the  abstract  intelligently  and 
except  he  understands  the  laws  of 
the  place  governing  real  estate  transactions, 
his  abstract  alone  will  do  him  little  good  yet 
with  the  aid  of  a  written  opinion  from  a  compe- 
tent attorney,  he  may  know  and  understand  the 
exact  condition  of  his  title.  At  any  time,  how- 
ever, he  can  exhibit  his  abstract  that  a  pur- 
chaser or  mortgagee  may  satisfy  himself  of  the 
merchantability  of  the  title  and  be  willing  to 
rely  on  the  title  as  exhibited  to  buy  the  prop- 
erty or  to  close  a  loan  on  it  as  security.  How- 

(253) 


254         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

ever,  it  must  be  understood  at  all  times  that 
an  abstract  does  not  per  se  make  or  insure  a 
good  or  a  merchantable  title. 

In  the  more  settled  portions  of  the  United 
States,  where  conveyances  are  many  owing  to 
the  age  of  the  titles,  and  where  the  abstracts 
are  over  bulky  and  cumbersome  on  account  of 
the  extensive  history  in  the  exhibit,  other  f  orms, 
more  convenient  to  handle,  have  been  devised 
for  owners  and  purchasers. 

Companies  have  been  formed  and  corpora- 
tions have  been  organized  whose  purpose  it  is 
to  make  examinations  of  titles  and  then  over 
their  signature  they  will  issue  a  statement  set- 
ting out  the  condition  of  the  title.  Before  any 
such  statement  can  be  made  the  company  itself 
must  have  prepared  an  abstract  of  title  to  the 
property  and  had  the  same  examined  by  one  of 
its  attorneys. 

This  attorney  will  after  an  examination  of 
the  abstract  write  the  result  of  his  investiga- 
tion, setting  out  who  is  the  owner  of  the  prop- 
erty, or  if  more  than  one,  what  interests  the 
several  owners  have;  he  will  also  state  what 
liens  or  encumbrances  affect  the  property  and 
what  easements  impose  or  attach.  So  far  it  is 
just  as  heretofore  explained  in  the  compiling 
and  examination  of  the  abstract. 

But  from  now  on  the  process  changes  and  in- 
stead of  delivering  the  separate  abstract  and 


TITLE  INSURANCE  POLICIES.  255 

opinion  of  the  attorney  to  the  owner  of  the 
property,  the  company  will  issue  him  a  certifi- 
cate of  title  or  a  guaranty  policy  and  will  it- 
self file  away  in  its  vault  the  ab- 
Titie  stract  and  the  examiner's  opinion  on 

insurance.  r 

the  title  as  based  on  the  exhibit  of 
the  records  by  the  abstract  itself.  The  certifi- 
cate of  title  is  an  absolute  statement  of  the 
facts  concerning  the  condition  of  the  title,  made 
over  the  signature  of  the  company,  setting  forth 
who  are  the  owners,  what  is  their  interest  in 
the  property,  what  are  the  encumbrances,  if 
any,  and  anything  else  that  may  affect  the  va- 
lidity of  the  title.  This  certificate  is  an  abso- 
lute statement  and  must  not  be  confused  with 
the  certificate  at  the  close  of  the  abstract  which 
merely  asserts  that  the  records  are  properly 
shown.  (See  page  157.) 

If  the  company  should  err  in  its  judgment  and 
the  purchaser  or  mortgagee  should  lose  through 
such  error,  the  loser  would  have  recourse 
against  the  company  issuing  the  certificate,  to 
the  extent  of  his  loss.  This  form  of  certificate 
is  not  universally  used  and  is  employed  in  cer- 
tain localities  where  the  statute  of  limitation 
is  strong  against  defects  of  long  standing. 

A  guaranty  policy  or  policy  of  title  insurance 
is  issued  in  the  same  way  as  the  certificate  of 
title  but  is  not  necessarily  so  broad  in  its  state- 
ments nor  so  far  reaching  in  its  provisions. 


256         LAND  SUBVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

As  there  is  insurance  against  loss  by  fire, 
against  accident,  etc.,  so  this  form  of  insurance 
or  security  from  loss  in  title  to  real  property 
is  arranged  in  much  the  same  manner.  The 
title  insurance  company  will,  for  a  specified 
sum,  issue  a  policy  to  the  owner  of  a  property 
protecting  him  against  loss  by  reason  of  de- 
fects in  title.  Or  it  may  issue  a  policy  to  a 
mortgagee  insuring  him  against  loss  of  his 
money  by  reason  of  title,  etc.  It  may  even 
guarantee  the  payment  of  his  mortgage  when 
due  and  if  payment  is  not  so  made  the  company 
will  take  the  mortgage,  pay  him  his  money  and 
make  the  foreclosure  if  necessary. 

Or  if  there  is  an  easement  running  with  a  ti- 
tle for  or  against  its  benefit,  the  title  insurance 
company  will  issue  its  policy  for  the  protection 
or  the  enjoyment  of  the  easement  or  against 
its  encroachment  on  the  property  as  the  case 
may  be.  Ofttimes  titles  lose  their  merchanta- 
bility for  the  time  being  especially  during  the 
probating  of  an  estate.  If  an  owner  dies  leav- 
ing heirs  all  of  legal  age,  they  may  at  once  de- 
sire to  sell  the  property,  and  under  the  law  the 
title  to  the  property  would  be  liable  to  any 
indebtedness  of  the  decedent  until  the  probate 
was  complete.  The  company  can  at  once  act  as 
an  intermediary  issuing  its  policy  to  the  pur- 
chaser, insuring  him  against  loss  from  claims 
probated  and  protecting  itself  by  receiving  and 


TITLE  INSURANCE  POLICIES.  257 

holding  the  purchase  money  until  the  estate  is 
settled  and  the  probate  is  completed. 

Of  course  the  conducting  of  such  a  business 
is  profitable  only  where  population  is  dense  and 
where  demands  are  great.  And  the  promotion 
of  such  a  company  requires  a  vast  amount  of 
capital,  though  the  profits  from  its  operations 
rightly  managed  have  proved  a  good  investment 
to  the  stockholders,  in  the  dividend  returns. 

The  most  extensive  and  successful  company 
of  this  kind  in  the  central  United  States  is  the 
Chicago  Title  and  Trust  Company,  with  assets 
valued  at  over  seven  million  dollars,  while  the 
Title  Guaranty  Company  of  New  York  City  has 
a  capital  and  surplus  of  over  sixteen  millions. 
On  the  Pacific  coast  guaranty  policies  are  rather 
in  more  common  use  than  is  the  abstract  and 
the  same  is  rapidly  becoming  so  among  the  Gulf 
States. 

However,  be  the  title  insured  or  guaranteed, 
both  the  guaranty  certificate  or  the  policy  of  in- 
surance is  founded  on  the  conditions  of  the 
title  as  it  is  disclosed  by  an  abstract.  The  ab- 
stract prepared  for  the  basis  of  the  policy  or 
the  certificate  may  not  be  so  elaborate  as  the 
one  issued  for  circulation,  but  it  has  given  in 
it  all  the  essentials  of  the  records,  so  that  the 
examiner  can  be  assured  of  the  conditions  ex- 
isting, in  order  that  he  may  or  may  not  recom- 
mend that  his  company  shall  issue  a  certificate 

17 


258         LAND  SUEVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

or  policy ;  or  in  case  a  policy  is  to  be  issued  he 
can  advise  what  exceptions  are  to  be  made  or 
modifications  included  from  which  the  guaranty 
of  loss  is  to  be  excluded. 

An  instance  of  a  certificate  not  making  such 
an  exception  is  cited  in  a  late  case  from  Mis- 
souri. See  (Dodd  v.  Williams,  3  Mo.  App.  278; 
also  Bank  v.  Ward,  100  U.  S.  195).  The  certifi- 
cate stated  that  "as  per  the  county  records 
and  the  index  to  such  records"  the  title  to  the 
land  in  question  was  "good"  on  the  day  of  the 
date  of  such  certificate  in  one  William  King 
"and  that  there  was  no  incumbrance  thereon 
nor  any  lien  thereon  save  for  certain  taxes 
therein  specified."  It  is  a  fact,  however,  that 
a  trust  deed  was  then  of  record  purporting  to 
mortgage  the  premises  under  examination,  yet 
executed  by  one  who  at  the  time  had  no  title  of 
record.  The  mortgagor  later  acquired  title  and 
this  then  made  good  the  lien  on  the  title  that 
had  been  certified  "good"  in  William  King. 

Justice  Bakewell  in  his  remarks  when  he  ren- 
dered the  decision  of  the  appellate  court  says 
in  part,  that '  *  an  examiner  of  titles  is  bound  to 
know  the  state  of  the  law  on  the  subject,  at 
least  sufficiently  to  put  him  on  his  guard; 
and  where  there  may  be  a  reasonable  doubt 
as  to  whether  such  or  such  a  recorded  in- 
strument is  a  lien,  if  he  choose  to  resolve  the 
doubt  he  does  so  at  his  own  peril.    If  he 


TITLE  INSURANCE  POLICIES.  259 

does  not  choose  to  assume  this  liability  he 
may  easily  avoid  it  by  noting  in  his  certifi- 
cate every  question  which  arises  upon  the 
title  as  to  which  there  can  be  the  slightest 
doubt  in  his  mind;  or  he  may  avoid  the 
liability  by  giving  a  list  of  such  deeds  and 
incumbrances  and  abstain  from  expressing 
any  opinion  as  to  their  legal  effect." 
The  great  advantage  of  a  policy  of  title  in- 
surance issued  by  a  reliable  company  is  in  the 
fact  that  while  the  title  itself  is  in  no  wise  im- 
proved by  the  policy  issued,  yet  any  possible 
chance  of  a  loss  by  reason  of  a  hidden  defect 
is  borne  by  the  company  so  issuing 
oMitie         ^e  P0^0^-    The  company  then  bears 
insurance,      the  burden  and  worry  of  loss  just  as 
a  fire  insurance  company  carries  the 
risk.    If  no  loss  occurs,  if  the  title  is  not  at- 
tacked, the  premium  paid  for  the  policy  is  profit 
to  the  company;  but  it  has  stood  ready  at  all 
times  to  defend  the  owner  and  his  title  against 
any  possible  contingency. 

The  records  may  show  a  perfect  title  and  yet 
the  owner  of  a  property  may  be  in  danger  of 
losing  it.  No  record  in  itself  can  disclose 
whether  or  not  one  of  the  deeds  had  been 
forged;  or  if  the  wife's  name  had  been  ob- 
tained through  fraud;  or  if  the  first  wife  had 
died  and  the  husband  had  married  another 
Mary,  and  that  a  deed  from  him  and  the  second 


260         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

wife  did  not  convey  the  property  formerly  con- 
veyed to  Mm  and  the  first  wife  jointly.1 

Nor  can  any  record  or  an  abstract  disclose 
that  a  grantor  in  one  of  the  deeds  was  either 
a  minor,  a  profligate  or  a  lunatic  at  the  time  of 
its  execution.  These  risks  and  others  are  al- 
ways present  even  though  the  records  and  the 
abstract  disclose  an  unbroken  chain  of  title. 

And  when  a  guaranty  certificate  or  policy  of 
title  insurance  issues  to  an  owner,  the  company 
assumes  the  burden  of  these  possibilities  and 
stands  ready  to  defend  the  owner  against  at- 
tack; and  if  his  title  is  attacked  and  he  suffers 
loss,  it  will  repay  him  according  to  the  tenor 
of  the  contract  for  indemnity. 

1.  An  instance  of  such  a  case  came  to  the  notice  of  the 
author  from  Spokane,  Washington.  A  man  and  wife 
owned  jointly  a  property,  it  being  a  valuable  corner  in 
the  downtown  district.  While  they  were  sojourning  in 
a  foreign  state  the  wife  died.  The  husband  later  married 
another  wife  of  the  same  given  name  as  the  former. 
When  he  sold  his  interest  in  the  property,  the  wife  of 
same  name  joining  gave  the  record  the  appearance  that 
all  interest  had  been  conveyed.  Some  years  after  two  chil- 
dren of  the  first  wife  appeared  and  claimed  their  half 
interest  which  the  courts  awarded  them.  At  that  time 
it  was  improved  with  a  sky  scraper  and  the  supposed 
owner  had  to  pay  some  several  hundred  thousand  dollars 
additional  for  the  property  he  fully  believed  to  be  his  own 
already  and  which  his  abstract  so  showed  and  which  his 
attorney  had  so  pronounced. 


TITLE  INSURANCE  POLICIES.  261 

A  FEW  CONCRETE  ARGUMENTS  AND  CASES  IN  POINT. 

(1)  Anthony  Clark  was  a  resident  of  Law- 
rence county,  Indiana,  and  the  owner  of  one 
hundred  and  sixty  acres  of  land.    Being  desir- 
ous of  providing  for  the  future  maintenance  of 
his  wife  and  children,  he  conveyed  this  land  by 
deed  to  his  wife,  Emily  Clark,  March  6,  1876. 

The  deed  provided  that  she  should  hold  this 
land  during  her  life,  or  widowhood,  in  the  event 
she  should  become  his  widow,  but  that  after  her 
death  or  future  marriage  the  estate  should  pass 
to  his  heirs  by  his  wife,  Emily  Clark.  He  pre- 
sumed, apparently,  that  his  wife  would  survive 
him,  and  after  her  death  he  sold  the  land  for 
$2,109.70  to  A.  W.  Shirey,  who  was  a  well-known 
merchant  of  Milburn,  Indiana. 

Shirey  went  into  possession  under  this  deed 
and  remained  in  possession  for  eleven  years, 
when  the  supreme  court  decided  that  the  land 
belonged  to  the  heirs  of  Emily  Clark,  deceased, 
and  divested  the  title  out  of  A.  W.  Shirey  and 
vested  the  same  in  said  heirs. 

(2)  Croker  and  wife  mortgaged  some  real 
estate,  of  which  they  were  the  owners  in  the 
city  of  Chicago,  to  one  Boone.    A  short  time 
after  the  instrument  was  recorded  in  the  proper 
office  all  the  records  were  destroyed  by  fire.    A 
few  years  later,  but  before  the  mortgage  was 
satisfied,  Croker  and  his  wife  sold  the  same 
property  to  one  Steele. 


262         LAND  SUEVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

Later  when  Boone  attempted  to  foreclose  his 
mortgage,  Steele  filed  a  bill  in  chancery  to  en- 
join him  from  proceeding,  alleging  that  no  such 
mortgage  was  ever  executed,  that  the  complain- 
ant was  a  bona  fide  purchaser  for  value  without 
either  actual  or  constructive  notice  of  the  ex- 
istence of  any  prior  deed  or  mortgage  on  the 
property. 

The  testimony  showed  that  before  Steele  pur- 
chased the  property  he  had  his  attorney  exam- 
ine an  abstract  of  title  to  the  property,  but 
there  was  nothing  on  the  abstract  to  show  that 
it  was  full  and  complete. 

The  court  held  that  the  fact  that  the  rec- 
ord was  destroyed  in  no  manner  affected  the 
notice  afforded  by  the  recording;  that  Steele 
was  bound  to  know  that  it  had  been  recorded, 
even  though  the  records  were  destroyed. 

Boone  was  permitted  to  proceed  with  the 
foreclosure  and  Steele  was  compelled  to  stand 
by  and  see  the  land  to  which  he  had  a  deed  put 
up  and  sold  under  mortgage,  the  existence  of 
which  he  knew  nothing  of  at  the  time  he  pur- 
chased the  property.  (Steele  v.  Boone,  75  111. 
457.) 

(3)  In  a  case  from  Pennsylvania,  a  father 
executed  a  deed  to  his  son,  but  for  some  reason 
did  not  deliver  it.  After  his  death  the  deed 
was  placed  on  record  and  the  son  secured  a 
mortgage  on  the  property.  Subsequently  the 
other  children  by  bill  in  equity  had  the  deed 


TITLE  INSURANCE  POLICIES.  263 

set  aside.  The  son  lost  his  property  and  the 
mortgagee  lost  his  security. 

Another  case  from  the  same  state  is  cited 
where  the  son  having  the  same  name  as  the 
father  executed  a  mortgage  and  obtained  a  loan. 
Later  it  was  discovered  that  the  incumbrance 
was  not  executed  by  the  real  owner  but  by  one 
who  had  no  present  interest. 

(4)  In  the  case  of  John  F.  Dietz  reported  in 
note  1  of  Chapter  XV,  had  he  secured  a  policy 
of  title  insurance  in  place  of  a  shotgun,  at  the 
time  of  closing  his  purchase,  the  guaranty  com- 
pany would  have  made  good  his  loss,  would  have 
fought  his  battle  for  him  in  the  courts,  and  not 
from  behind  breastworks;  no  lives  would  have 
been  sacrificed  and  John  F.  Dietz  of  Cameron 
Dam,  Wisconsin,  would  no  doubt,  be  living  hap- 
pily with  his  family  today,  in  place  of  serving 
a  life  sentence  in  prison. 

And  as  a  further  economic  proposition,  the 
guaranty  policy  would  have  cost  him  so  much 
less  than  all  the  other,  exclusive  of  the  mental 
anguish. 

Many  other  instances  could  be  cited  where 
the  possession  of  a  title  insurance  policy  would 
have  protected  the  holder,  but  not  having  it 
great  loss  was  sustained. 

SUGGESTION. — Visit  the  office  of  your  abstract- 
er  and  determine  if  you  need  a  title  insurance 
policy. 


CHAPTER  XXIX. 

THE  TORRENS  SYSTEM  OF  LAND  REGISTRATION. 

In  the  preceding  chapters  herein,  the  trans- 
fer of  land  ownership,  the  record  or  proof  of 
the  same  and  the  manner  of  exhibiting  that  own- 
ership and  proof  has  been  considered  by  one 
method  only. 

There  are  in  fact  more  systems  or  plans  of 
dealing  with  land,  each  vastly  different  from 
the  other  and  each  applicable  no  doubt  to  the 
conditions  of  the  country  where  it  obtains.  We 
may  classify  at  least  four  different  methods  of 
land  transfers  or  systems  of  conveyancing. 

The  English  system,  the  one  employed  in 
Great  Britain  especially,  is  no  doubt  the  sim- 
plest, and  as  suggested  in  chapter  XIII,  it  re- 
lies principally  on  the  law  of  primogeniture  or 
it  could  not  exist  on  account  of  its  meagerness. 
But  in  the  English  countries  the  ti- 

Law  of         ties  consist  chiefly  of  family  histo- 
mhentance       .  ., . 

in  England,  ries  or  pedigrees  and  charts  01  re- 
lationship ;  and  where  an  heir  inher- 
its, all  the  papers  and  family  records  go  with 
the  land.  In  case  of  a  transfer  it  is  more  a 
matter  of  proving  the  owner,  who  is  the  next  in 
line  of  inheritance  of  a  former  owner,  than  any 

(264) 


TOBBENS  SYSTEM  OF  LAND  EEGISTBATION.  265 

other  condition  of  title,  and  family  records  and 
family  trees  are  consulted  rather  than  any  pub- 
lic record.  Since  estates  remain  in  the  family 
and  pass  by  inheritance  the  family  record  be- 
comes the  important  one;  and  it  is  a  matter  of 
some  interest  to  note  that  more  than  one-half 
of  all  England  and  Wales  is  owned  by  twenty- 
five  hundred  persons  only. 

The  method  of  obtaining  a  loan  under  this 
system  is  simple  and  secret.  The  proprietor 
merely  deposits  his  title  papers,  like  he  would 
deposit  his  jewelry  in  this  country  to  pawn,  and 
the  lender  thereby  obtains  an  equitable  lien  on 
the  estate. 

The  second  system,  that  of  making  a  copy 
of  the  instruments  of  transfer  in  a  public  rec- 
ord is  known  as  the  recording  system,  is  the 
one  employed  in  the  United  States, 
Recording  an(^  nas  ^een  explained  at  length  in 
system  of  previous  chapters.  In  some  modified 
transfer.  form  it  is  also  used  in  nearly  all  of 
the  countries  of  Europe,  two  counties 
in  England,  parts  of  Asia  and  Africa,  the  re- 
publics of  Central  and  South  America. 

Another  system  known  as  the  judicial  system 
is  found  in  Germany,  Sweden,  Turkey,  parts  of 
Mexico  and  a  few  other  places,  where  the  trans- 
fers are  taken  account  of  by  the  courts  and 
judicial  entries  are  made  determining  the  new 
owner. 


266         LAND  SUKVBY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

The  fourth  system  is  based  originally  on  the 
theory  that  there  is  but  one  estate  in  land,  that 
of  absolute  ownership,  and  the  party  in  posses- 
sion is  the  real  owner.  Were  this  always  true 
the  plan  would  be  simple  enough  and  a  list  of 
the  several  owners  with  their  estates  would 
comprise  a  complete  record  of  the  titles. 

The  first  lists  prepared  of  such  ownership 
was  no  doubt  the  one  supervised  by  William  the 
Conqueror  in  1066,  when  the  Doomsday  Books 
were  compiled  under  his  direction. 

In  1858,  Sir  Robert  Richard  Torrens,  an  Eng- 
lish lord  and  governor  in  Australia,  conceived 
a  plan  of  listing  the  several  tracts  and  owners 
in  his  province,  to  show  the  estates  and  by  whom 
they  were  held.  He  also  conceived 
The  Ton-en's  the  idea  of  keeping  trace  of  the  ex- 
ofSiand  changes  by  means  of  a  system  of 

registration,  bookkeeping,  and  this  system  in  its 
several  modifications  is  what  is 
known  as  the  Torrens  system  of  land  registra- 
tion. 

Its  chief  aim  is  to  simplify  the  method  of 
transfer  of  real  estate  and  contemplates  that 
when  one  man  desires  to  transfer  his  right  or 
possession  to  another,  they  two  will  go  before 
the  registrar  and  the  seller  will  present  his  cer- 
tificate showing  his  ownership  at  the  same  time 
directing  the  registrar  to  make  out  the  new 
slip  in  the  name  of  the  purchaser  and  thus  the 
trade  is  completed. 


TOBEENS  SYSTEM  OF  LAND  REGISTBATION.  267 

A  very  simple  process  indeed;  no  more  trou- 
ble than  the  payment  of  one's  taxes.  True,  if 
there  was  nothing  more  to  be  considered  than 
the  tenancy  of  the  property  and  this  is  about 
all  that  obtained  in  Australia  when  the  system 
was  devised.  Conveyancing  by  bookkeeping  as 
it  is  termed  was  simple  enough  then.  But  even 
in  Australia  since  the  crown  has  alienated  the 
lands  and  recording  acts  have  been  enacted  the 
system  is  extremely  complicated  and  not  abso- 
lutely sure  in  fact. 

Another  feature  of  the  system  is  the  proposal 
of  the  setting  aside  a  part  of  the  registry  fee, 
and  the  amounts  so  set  aside  to  constitute  a 
fund  to  be  held  by  the  county  to  make  good  the 
loss  occasioned  to  purchasers  by  error  of  the 
clerk.  This  feature  has,  however,  proved  a  joke 
rather  than  a  fact,  because  the  fund  after  many 
years  of  operation  is  not  enough  to  make  good 
against  one  vital  error. 

With  the  Declaration  of  Independence  title  to 
all  lands  in  the  United  States  was  divorced 
from  royalty  and  became  vested  in  the  sover- 
eignty of  the  people.  The  title  has  by  the  en- 
actment of  Congress  and  laws  of  legislative  bod- 
ies been  divided  and  transferred  until  all  lands 
not  now  controlled  by  the  United  States  G-ov- 
ernment  or  by  some  state,  is  owned  and  pos- 
sessed by  some  individual.  The  laws  of  our 
land  direct  how  the  title  is  transferred  from 


268         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

parent  to  child,  from  seller  to  purchaser,  etc. 
The  laws  even  direct  the  form  of  the  instrument 
to  be  used  in  the  making  of  such  transfer. 

As  discussed  in  previous  pages,  the  transfer 
either  by  deed  or  devise  is  not  always  made  com- 
plete, so  that  courts  of  competent  jurisdiction 
are  required  to  assist  in  determining  the  rights 
of  the  several  parties  in  interest. 
Weakness  Under  the  Torrens  system,  one  man. 
Ton-ens  ^ne  registrar,  a  man  elected  by  a  pop- 
law,  ular  vote,  is  made  judge  of  the  le- 
gality and  completeness  of  each  and 
every  transfer.  And  when  he  has  cancelled  one 
certificate  and  stamped  another  it  is  considered 
the  transaction  is  closed  and  the  ownership  of 
the  new  proprietor  cannot  be  questioned.  How 
may  the  registrar  know  all  the  fine  interpreta- 
tions of  a  will  in  order  to  issue  certificates  of 
ownership  to  the  proper  heirs  I  How  may  he  in 
fact  know  that  the  holder  presenting  a  certifi- 
cate for  cancellation  is  the  true  owner?  Cer- 
tificates have  been  forged  and  costly  suits  in- 
curred by  the  owner  in  getting  the  matter  ad- 
justed, and  the  loser  has  no  recourse  against 
the  indemnity  fund.1 

1.  It  is  related  that  A.  owned  two  city  lots  on  a  prom- 
inent corner  in  the  city  of  Winnipeg.  The  northern  bound- 
ary did  not  extend  true  east  and  west  but  at  an  angle 
of  84°  east.  The  west  line  measured  150  feet  9  inches. 
A.  sold  to  B.  that  part  of  the  lots  described  as  "beginning 


TORBENS  SYSTEM  OF  LAND  REGISTRATION.  269 

It  is  also  often  argued  by  advocates  of  the 
Torrens  system  that  all  titles  are  direct  from 
the  Government.  That  when  an  owner  parts 
with  a  property  it  is  first  transferred  back  to 
the  Government,  then  the  Government  conveys 
the  property  to  the  new  owner.  That  by  such 
a  system  all  titles  are  rejuvenated  at  every 

at  the  northwest  corner  of  lot  one;  thence  south  70  ft; 
thence  easterly  parallel  with  the  north  line  of  said  lots  1 
and  2  to  the  east  line  of  said  lot  2;  thence  north  to  the 
northeast  corner  of  said  lot  2;  thence  westerly  along  the 
north  line  of  said  lots  to  the  place  of  beginning,  all  in 
block  number  five,"  etc.  B.  erected  a  valuable  ten  story 
building  on  the  ground  measured  seventy  feet  southerly 
and  at  right  angles  to  the  north  line. 

A.  then  sold  the  south  eighty  feet  of  said  lots  to  C.  All 
this  was  done  under  the  Torrens  system  and  the  regis- 
trar took  up  and  cancelled  A's  certificate  entire  and  is- 
sued one  to  B.  by  first  description  and  another  to  C.  by 
last  description. 

Later  A.  discovered  that  the  west  line  of  lot  one  not 
being  at  right  angles  to  the  northerly  line  represented  the 
hypotenuse  of  a  triangle  and  was  longer  than  one  hundred 
and  fifty  feet,  the  supposed  depth  of  the  lots.  B's  first 
measurement  of  seventy  feet  extended  but  69.6  feet  at 
right  angles  from  the  north  line  and  he  had  encroached 
four-tenths  of  a  foot  on  land  he  had  not  bought.  By  the 
variance  in  the  two  methods  of  descriptions  this  four- 
tenths  had  not  been  included  in  either  conveyance  and 
though  A.  held  no  certificate  of  title,  he  yet  possessed  the 
meager  strip  which  B.  was  forced  to  buy  at  a  good  round  . 
sum  rather  than  move  his  wall.  His  Torrens  certificate 
did  not  protect  him,  yet  a  good  abstract  of  title  with  a 
plat  of  the  premises  would  have  shown  him  his  measure- 
ments and  he  had  been  better  served. 


270         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

transfer  and  that  by  this  method  they  can  never 
become  complicated  nor  extended  and  no  loss 
can  occur.  But  such  an  idea  is  only  fallacy  as 
one  or  two  illustrations  may  prove,  and  Tor- 
rens  certificates  of  title  are  no  more  sure  than 
any  other  method  and  often  not  so  much  so.2 

Advocates  of  the  Torrens  system  also  suggest 
that  it  does  away  with  the  use  of  abstracts  and 
the  expense  of  court  costs.3  On  the  contrary, 
in  making  application  for  registration  of  a  title 

2.  In  the  celebrated  case  Gibbs  v.  Messer  a  man  had 
loaned  $30,000  on  a  certificate  of  title  issued  in  regular 
course  by  the  regular  registrar  and  had  loaned  it  to  the 
man  to  whom  the  certificate  was  issued.    Later  it  was  dis- 
covered the  original  certificate  presented  to  the  registrar 
was  forged  and  the  one  issued  in  its  place  to  the  sup- 
posed new  owner  had  no  value.    The  man  lost  his  $30,000 
which  a  guaranty  certificate  or  title  insurance  policy  is- 
sued by  a  good  title  guaranty  company  would  have  saved 
him.     In   neither   case   above   could   either   loser   have    a 
refund   from  the   guaranty   fund   of  the   Torrens   System. 
(Gibbs  v.  Messer,   (1891)   A.  C.  248,  House  of  Lords  and 
Privy  Council,  7  A.  M.  L.  R.  89.) 

3.  Under  the  Minnesota  "Torrens  Law"  one  may  nom- 
inally hold  an  "indefeasible"  title  under  a  certificate  of 
registration  issued  by  the  registrar  when  in  fact  the  great- 
er part  of  the  land  may  have  been  condemned  for  muni- 
cipal purposes.     A  special  instance  is  cited  from  Minne- 
apolis where  a  purchaser  of  land,  relying  on  his  registered 
title,  found  to  his  sorrow  that  he  owned  but  a  narrow  strip, 
the  remainder  of  the  lot  having  been  condemned  in  a  pro- 
ceeding of  which  the  Torrens  Law  took  no  notice.     And 
furthermore   fraudulent   registration    often    creates    great 
hardship  on  the  real  owner.     (Bart  v.  Martin,  99  Minn. 
207.) 


TORRENS  SYSTEM  OF  LAND  REGISTRATION.  271 

the  first  requisite  is  that  the  applicant  must 
furnish  a  complete  abstract  of  his  title.  Next,  it 
makes  no  difference  how  good  or  clear  his  title 
may  be,  he  must  bring  a  suit  in  chancery  to 
quiet  his  title.  After  all  this  is  done  he  must  in 
addition  pay  the  necessary  registration  fees 
which  amount  to  many  times  the  cost  of  record- 
ing a  deed. 

It  seems,  in  summing  up,  that  a  system  of 
accounting  can  scarcely  avail  to  show  the  con- 
dition or  to  determine  the  ownership  of  a  prop- 
erty, when  the  Supreme  Courts  all  over  our 
land  are  ruling  at  variance  with  former  deci- 
sions, as  it  appears.  And  too,  the  ability  of  no 
registrar  can  compare  to  the  tribunal  sitting 
as  our  Supreme  Court,  be  the  people  ever  so 
happy  in  their  selection  of  a  registrar. 

It  is  also  related  of  Sir  Robert  Torrens  him- 
self that  he  never  registered  the  ti- 

d? not  use?"  ^e  ^°  an  acre  °^  ^s  own  ^an(^  un(ler 
the  system,  although  a  large  land 
owner  in  the  counties  to  which  his  law  ap- 
plied. (Registration  of  Title  to  Land,  Brick- 
dale,  page  49.) 

Abel  Davis,  one  of  the  greatest  exponents  of 
the  system  in  the  United  States,  while  he  was 
registrar  of  Cook  County,  Illinois,  is  at  this 
writing  vice-president  of  a  title  guaranty  com- 
pany, in  which  company  he  became  interested 
before  the  expiration  of  his  term  of  office  as 


272         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

registrar,  and  his  company  is  now  engaged 
in  insuring  the  title  to  those  properties  which 
have  already  been  registered  under  the  Torrens 
act. 

The  guaranty  feature  supporting  the  validity 
of  the  system  can  scarcely  be  considered.  Its 
advocates  would  have  us  believe  that  the  whole 
county  is  back  of  it,  with  its  taxing  power  of 
the  entire  assets  within  the  borders  of  the  dis- 
trict where  the  law  operates.  But  they  do  not 
understand  it  is  only  to  the  extent  of  the  guar- 
anty fund  which  in  Cook  County,  II- 
its  linois,  after  seventeen  years  of  oper- 

fun^very  ation,  amounted  to  less  than  twenty- 
small,  two  thousand  dollars.  Would  a  cer- 
tificate backed  by  such  an  insignifi- 
cant sum  appeal  to  an  owner  of  real  property 
in  place  of  one  which  had  behind  it  over  eight 
million  dollars  of  assets,  and  the  best  array  of 
legal  talent  that  can  be  assembled,  if  such  owner 
were  rightly  informed  on  the  subject? 

The  Torrens  law  in  different  particulars, 
though  similar  in  the  main,  has  been  foisted  on 
the  statute  books  of  several  states,  but  in  each 
instance  where  it  has  been  tried  the  courts  have 
held  its  features  unconstitutional.  But  even 
where  the  acts  are  allowed  the  use  of  the  sys- 
tem has  tended  to  make  the  titles  intricate,  un- 
certain and  cumbersome,  while  all  transactions 
thereunder  are  slow  indeed. 


TOBRENS  SYSTEM  OF  LAND  REGISTRATION.  273 

Most  noticeably  is  this  true  in  Cook  County, 
Illinois,  where  the  Torrens  act  has  been  in 
operation  for  some  years.  The  legislature  made 
certain  provisions  of  title  registration  and  the 
registrar  in  trying  to  follow  it  out  made  many 
errors  and  ludicrous  mistakes.  In  one  notable 
instance  he  issued  his  Torrens  certificate  de- 
claring the  fee  simple  title  in  one  who  held  a 
life  estate  only. 

Again,  it  was  too  uncertain  a  task  for  the 
registrar  to  determine  the  heirship  of  an  intes- 
tate who  died  with  a  registered  title,  or  to  in- 
terpret the  will  left  by  a  testator  owning  a  reg- 
istered title.  The  legislature,  to  relieve  such 
conditions,  passed  an  additional  section,  pro- 
viding that  on  the  death  of  a  registered  owner, 
a  proceeding  must  be  had  in  the  chancery  court 
to  determine  the  heirship  of  an  intestate  or  the 
terms  of  the  will  of  a  testator  and  then,  that 
the  registrar  must  issue  his  certificate  accord- 
ing to  the  findings  of  such  decree. 

A  probate  proceeding  already  on  our  statute 
books  is  much  simpler  and  more  readily  dis- 
posed of  so  they  complicate  titles  and  retard 
settlements  of  estates  by  more  legislation. 

For  a  more  complete  treatise  of  this  subject 
the  reader  is  referred  to  '  *  The  Australian  Tor- 
rens System  by  James  E.  Hogg,"  London  1086 
pages.  ''The  Torrens  Law"  by  W.  C.  Niblack, 
Chicago.  "The  Torrens  System"  by  John  T. 

18 


274         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

Kenney,  Madison,  Wisconsin.   "An  Opinion  on 
the  Torrens  Law"  Vincent  D.  Wyman,  Chicago. 

COMPARATIVE  COST  OF  THE  TORRENS  SYSTEM. 


In  England,  for  conveyance  of  property  valued  at  from 
£3000  to  £10,000 — £7  for  the  first  £3000  and  one  shilling  for 
every  £50  additional. 

In  Saxony,  for  conveyance  of  property  valued  at  £10,000 
the  fee  is  £17-10s;  of  property  valued  at  £100,000  the  fee  is 
£107-10s.  A  rough  average  of  all  transfers  for  the  year 
1895,  places  the  fee  at  $7.50  each  (£l-10s). 

In  Ontario,  for  conveyances  of  property  valued  at  from 
$4000  to  $10,000  the  fees  range  from  $5  to  $20.  Where 
values  exceed  $50,000  the  fee  is  $50. 

In  Minnesota,  on  land  valued  at  $1,000  or  less  the  fee 
is  $9  for  registry,  with  one  dollar  per  thousand  for  addi- 
tional value. 

In  Illinois,  the  fees  range  from  $25  to  $30  for  registering 
in  addition  to  transfer  fees  to  be  paid,  as  well  as  abstract 
fee  and  court  costs  before  registration  may  be  granted. 

Note. — The  recording  fee  in  the  several  states  for  any 
deed  or  mortgage  rarely  exceeds  $2.00  and  the  abstract  ex- 
tension from  $2  to  $3. 


CHAPTER  XXX. 

THE  WIDOW'S  ESTATE. 

In  chapter  XXII  of  this  volume  some  men- 
tion was  made  of  the  share  of  an  estate  allowed 
to  the  widow  on  the  death  of  her  husband. 
There  are  many  interests  in  the  estate  which  she 
has  a  perfect  right  to  claim  and  to  which  she 
should  assert  her  rights  before  it  is  too  late, 
for  by  lapse  of  time  the  privilege  may  have 
vanished. 

Usually  after  the  death  of  the  husband  the 
burden  of  management  falls  very  heavy  be- 
cause the  widow  has  had  little  business  experi- 
ence and  ofttimes  she  is  defrauded  of  her  rights 
on  account  of  this  inexperience. 

The  dower  interest  heretofore  mentioned  is 
that  share  in  the  land  allowed  by  the  law  of  the 
state  where  the  property  is  located.  In  Illinois, 
it  is  the  income  of  one  third  of  the  property 
during  the  remaining  life  of  the  widow.  In 
Iowa,  the  widow  gets  one-third  in  fee  if  there 
are  children.  If  no  children,  she  is  allowed 
property  to  the  value  of  $7500  and  one  half  of 
all  remainder.  In  Indiana,  the  widow  gets  one- 
third  of  the  land  in  fee,  absolutely  hers  to  own 
and  dispose  of  as  she  may  desire. 
The  law  Other  states  have  different  laws  and 
determines  in  some  tne  widow  gets  all  the  real 
the  estate,  estate  acquired  during  the  period  of 
(275) 


276         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

the  marriage.  Therefore,  to  determine  the 
exact  amount  of  her  share,  inquire  into  the  law 
of  the  state  where  the  property  is  located. 

Another  right,  is  that  called  the  Eight  of 
Homestead.  This  is  usually  considered  to  be 
the  house  in  which  the  family  lived  at  the  time 
the  death  occurred,  and  in  Illinois  is  the  home 
with  a  few  acres  of  ground  attached,  fictitiously 
valued  at  one  thousand  dollars,  be  the  house  a 
mansion  or  a  cottage.  In  Texas  it  consists  of 
two  hundred  acres  of  land  if  held  in  the  coun- 
try or  property  in  town  appraised  at  five  thou- 
sand dollars,  while  other  states  have  various 
provisions.  The  homestead  is  also  considered 
for  the  benefit  of  any  minor  children  during  the 
term  of  their  infancy.  If  the  estate  is  extensive 
and  there  are  older  children  to  share  it,  and  not 
all  of  the  children  are  of  age,  or  if  the  family 
cannot  agree  as  to  a  division,  any  member  of 
the  family  may  apply  to  the  court  who  will  ap- 
point a  committee  of  three  men,  called  commis- 
sioners to  divide  the  estate  as  they  think  it 
should  be  done  according  to  the  law.  They  will 
first  set  off  the  homestead  ;  next  they 


The  ^rUi  set  apart  the  dower,  not  "dow- 

partitionof  f_  .        :  :    .  .      , 

the  lands,      ry,  '  '  and  then  they  will  divide  the  re- 

mainder among  the  children,  marking 
out  a  separate  tract  for  each  heir  interested  in 
the  estate.  If  none  of  the  children  attends  to 
having  the  estate  properly  divided,  it  is  a  proper 


THE  WIDOW'S  ESTATE.  277 

thing  for  the  widow  to  have  the  matter  ad- 
justed ;  because  for  a  proper  reason,  if  it  is  not 
done  in  due  season,  she  loses  her  right  and  later 
the  children  may  forget  their  filial  duty  and  the 
mother  might  have  need  for  a  proper  legal  pro- 
tection. 

Besides  this  there  is  usually  a  considerable 
amount  of  personal  property  to  be  distributed 
according  to  the  law  of  the  place  where  the 
family  lived  at  time  of  the  decease.  It  is  fre- 
quently allowed  that  the  widow  has  a  larger 
share  of  this  personal  property  than 

of  the  real  estate  but  if  ft1*™  are 
debts,  the  personal  property  is  sold 

first  to  pay  such  indebtedness.  And  as  explained 
in  a  previous  chapter,  if  the  personal  property 
is  not  sufficient  to  pay  all  the  debts,  a  part  of  the 
real  estate  is  also  sold,  but  the  homestead  right 
cannot  be  so  sold  if  the  widow  desires  to  retain 
it. 

A  widow  has  her  dower  rights  in  all  the  lands 
and  real  property  owned  by  her  husband  during 
marriage,  which  she  has  not  conveyed  away  and 
if  he  has  sold  a  property  without  her  joining  in 
the  deed,  on  his  death  she  can  assert  her  in- 
terest in  that  land. 

If,  however,  the  laws  of  the  state  declare  the 
husband  can  convey  without  the  wife  joining, 
he  can  do  so,  but  such  instances  are  rare. 

Another  source  of  income  is  the  amount  of 
life  insurance  left  by  the  deceased  and  if  the 


278         LAND  SUEVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

widow  is  named  as  the  beneficiary  in  the  policy, 
all  this  money  belongs  to  her  and  no 
Collecting      one  can  iay  claim  to  any  part  of  it 
the  life  r    vi     f 

insurance,      and  this  money  is  not  liable  for  any 

debts  of  the  husband.  No  lawyer  is 
needed  to  collect  the  payment  from  the  life  in- 
surance company  as  the  local  agent  is  so  anx- 
ious to  prove  the  reliability  of  his  particular 
company,  that  he  will  gladly  make  the  settle- 
ment, free  of  charge  and  pay  the  full  amount  of 
the  policy. 

However,  to  make  a  proper  settlement  of  the 
full  estate  as  outlined  above  it  will  be  neces- 
sary to  secure  the  services  of  some  attorney 
and  be  sure  to  select  the  best  one  available. 

As  a  closing  paragraph  it  may  be  well  to  ad- 
vise against  investing  the  funds  left  to  the  wid- 
ow, in  a  business  or  concern  where 

Care  in         there  is  any  chance  for  loss,  though 
investments.  . 

the  promise  of  profits  appear  attract- 
ive. Promises  cannot  always  be  cashed  at  a 
bank  and  it  were  better  to,  invest  in  good  real 
estate  mortgages  yielding  five  or  six  per  cent 
per  year  than  to  speculate  in  any  other  form  of 
securities  promising  a  return  of  eight  or  ten  per 
cent.  The  safe  rule  is, ' '  Never  speculate,  unless 
you  can  afford  to  lose  the  investment. ' '  Consult 
the  banker  as  to  the  safest  form  of  securities 
to  buy  for  a  permanent  income. 


PAKT  FOUR. 

In  this  section  are  included  many  distinct 
subjects,  related  to  real  property  and  to  each 
other  though  not  successively  connected.  Many 
legal  instruments  are  shown  in  miniature;  in- 
terest tables  and  other  tables  useful  to  the  prop- 
erty owner  are  given.  A  complete  word  index 
of  the  entire  volume  is  a  valuable  feature  of 
this  division,  and  it  also  contains  an  accurate 
geographical  location  of  all  the  Prime  Merid- 
ians governing  the  survey  of  the  United  States. 


(279) 


The  succeeding  pages  contain  a  general  re- 
view of  the  text  portions  of  this  volume,  and 
this  test  is  arranged  for  ready  reference  with 
respect  to  the  regular  order  of  the  several  chap- 
ters. 

The  student  is  especially  recommended  to 
try  his  knowledge  of  the  subject  studied  by 
either  oral  or  writtens  answers  to  the  questions, 
when  he  has  completed  the  study  of  any  partic- 
ular chapter.  It  is  also  suggested  by  the  au- 
thor, that  the  subjects  be  pursued  in  the  reg- 
ular order  of  the  several  chapters  beginning 
with  the  first,  since  by  such  method,  the  whole 
work  will  be  best  understood  as  each  chapter  is 
a  preparatory  lesson  to  those  that  follow.  With 
few  exceptions  each  question  may  be  answered 
by  referring  to  the  text  of  the  chapter  to  which 
it  relates. 


(280) 


STUDENT'S  REVIEW  TEST.  281 


REVIEW  TEST  FOR  CHAPTER  I. 

MEASUBEMENTS. 

1.  How  many  rods  in  one  mile? 

2.  How  many  rods  in  a  quarter  mile? 

3.  How  many  yards  in  one  mile? 

4.  How  many  feet  in  one  mile? 

5.  What  is  a  chain?    How  long  is  it? 

6.  What  is  a  "Gunter's"  chain? 

7.  How  many  square  rods  make  one  acre? 

8.  How  many  rods  across    one    side    of    a 
square  forty-acre  farm? 

9.  How  many  chains  across  one  side  of  a 
square  forty? 

10.  How  many  rods  around  an  eighty-acre 
farm? 

11.  What  is  a  rood? 

12.  What  is  a  perch? 

13.  How  many  acres  in  a  section? 

14.  How  many  acres  in  a  square  mile? 

15.  How  many  acres  in  two  square  miles? 

16.  How  many  acres  in  a  farm  two  miles 
square  ? 

17.  How  many  chains  in  a  furlong? 

18.  How  many  chains  make  one  mile? 

19.  Who  invented  the  surveyor's  chain  now 
in  common  use? 

20.  How  many    square    chains    make    one 
acre? 


282         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 
REVIEW  TEST  FOR  CHAPTER  II. 

HISTORY  OF  OUR  SURVEY  SYSTEM. 

1.  Who  initiated  our  survey  system? 

2.  What  was  the  first  system  of  division? 

3.  Where  was  the  "Western  Territory"? 

4.  What  size  was  the  first  township? 

5.  Where  was  the  first  sectional  survey  em- 
ployed ? 

6.  How  were  the  sections  numbered  in  the 
first  townships? 

7.  How  are  the  sections  numbered  in  the 
townships  now? 

8.  Under  whose  direction  were  the  first  sur- 
veys made? 

9.  Under  what  department  are  the  surveys 
now  directed? 

10.  What  officer  is  head  of  the  Land  Office? 

11.  Where  are  the  "Seven  Ranges"? 

12.  How  many  paces  in  a  pole  ? 

13.  What  is  an  hundred? 

14.  What  is  a  township? 

15.  What  is  a  range? 

16.  What  is  a  section? 

17.  When  was  the  Department  of  Interior 
established  ? 

18.  Who  is  the  present  secretary  of  this  De- 
partment ? 

19.  How   many   departments  in  the    Presi- 
dent's cabinet? 

20.  Name  the  above   departments    and   the 
cabinet  officers. 


STUDENT'S  REVIEW  TEST.  283 


REVIEW  TEST  FOR  CHAPTER  III. 

MERIDIANS  AND   BASE   LINES. 

1.  Who  directs  the  public  surveys? 

2.  Under  what  department  is  it  conducted? 

3.  Who  is  in  charge  of  the  general  land  of- 
fice! 

4.  What  is  a  prime  meridian? 

5.  From  what  points  are  they  established? 

6.  What  are  guide  meridians! 

7.  What  is  a  base  line! 

8.  What  are  standard  parallels? 

9.  What  is  a  township? 

10.  What  is  a  range? 

11.  What  is  a  tier? 

12.  Name  and  locate  at  least   four   of   the 
principal  meridians. 

13.  Are  all  ranges  six  miles  wide? 

14.  Where  is  Ellicott's  line! 

15.  Where  is  the  Northwest  Territory? 

16.  Who  made  the  first  public  surveys? 

17.  To  whom  are  we  indebted  for  our  rec- 
tangular system  of  survey? 

18.  When  was  this  system  adopted? 

19.  What  prime  meridian  governs  the  sur- 
vey where  you  live? 

20.  Find  tier  number  five  north,  range  num- 
ber six  east,  on  the  diagram  in  this  chapter. 


284         LAND  SUBVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 


EEVIEW  TEST  FOR  CHAPTER  IV. 

THE  RECTANGULAR  SURVEY  SYSTEM. 

1.  How  many  prime  meridians  in  the  United 
States? 

2.  From  what  points  are  they  established? 

3.  What  prime  meridian  governs  the  survey 
where  you  live? 

4.  What  states  do  not  have  the  rectangular 
survey? 

5.  What  states  employ  the  metric  system  of 
survey  ? 

6.  What  is  a  metes  and  bounds  description? 

7.  How  many   prime   meridians   are   num- 
bered? 

8.  How  are  some  prime  meridians  named? 

9.  Distinguish  between  town,  township,  tier 
and  range. 

10.  What  is  a  congressional  township? 

11.  What  is  a  school  township  ? 

12.  What  is  a  political  township? 

13.  Do  they  conform  to  the  same  size  in  your 
county? 

14.  What  is  a  witness  tree? 

15.  How  are  corners  often  marked  on  the 
prairies  ? 

16.  If  a  corner  occurs  on  a  rock  ledge,  how 
marked  ? 


STUDENT'S  REVIEW  TEST.  285 

17.  What  are  memorials  of  a  survey? 

18.  What  penalty  for  interfering  with  me- 
morials of  survey? 

19.  What  was  the  western  boundary  of  the 
United  States  in  1800? 

20.  When  was  it  extended  to  the  Pacific? 


286         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 
REVIEW  TEST  FOE  CHAPTER  V. 

THE   CONGRESSIONAL    TOWNSHIP. 

1.  How  many  sections  in  a  township? 

2.  How  many  acres  in  a  regular  township? 

3.  Are  all  townships  the  same  size! 

4.  Why  is  the    north   line    of    a    township 
shorter  than  the  south! 

5.  How  are  the  sections  numbered  in  a  town- 
ship? 

6.  How  is  the  irregularity  in  size  of  a  town- 
ship disposed  of? 

7.  Which  sections  in  a  township  are  irregu- 
lar in  size? 

8.  What  is  a  fractional  section? 

9.  What  is  a  jog  corner? 

10.  What  is  a  correction  line? 

11.  Do  all  townships  contain  thirty-six  sec- 
tions? 

12.  When  they  do  not  which  sections   are 
omitted  ? 

13.  Do  the  confines    of   a   congressional,    a 
school,  and  a  political  township  agree? 

14.  Do  any  of  the  above  named  townships 
ever  extend  into  two  separate  counties? 

15.  Which  of  the  above  represent  county  di- 
visions ? 

16.  In  what  political  township  do  you  live? 

17.  Who  is  its  governing  officer? 

18.  What  are  his  chief  duties? 

19.  Who  is  your  county  surveyor? 

20.  What  are  his  duties  ? 


STUDENT'S  REVIEW  TEST.  287 


REVIEW  TEST  FOR  CHAPTER  VI. 

THE  PARTS  OF  A  SECTION. 

1.  How  many  acres  in  a  regular  section? 

2.  How  many  acres  in  a  fractional  section? 

3.  What  sections  in  all  townships  are  frac- 
tional? 

4.  How  many  acres  in  each  of  the  parts  of 
figure  XI? 

5.  What  is  a  lot  in  a  section? 

6.  Who  determines  the  lots  in  a  fractional 
section? 

7.  Does  the  south  half  of  a  section  contain 
half  its  area? 

8.  Where  is  the  surplus  placed  in  section 
three? 

9.  Where  in  section  nineteen? 

10.  Do  government  lots   of   a   section  ever 
contain  more  than  eighty  acres? 

11.  Why  is  the  section  seven  (figure  XX) 
so  narrow? 

12.  Which  is  the  larger  a  section  or  a  square 
mile? 

13.  What  sections  in  each  township  are  lot- 
ted? 

14.  How  many  lots  in  section  sixteen? 

15.  Which  section  is  the  school  section? 

16.  Why  is  it  so  named? 


288         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

17.  Are  any  other  sections  ever  school  sec- 
tions ! 

18.  Under  what  circumstances? 

19.  Have  you  ever  visited  an  abstract  office! 

20.  Name  an  abstract  firm  or  an  abstracter 
in  your  county. 


STUDENT'S  REVIEW  TEST.  289 


REVIEW  TEST  FOR  CHAPTER  VII. 

TOWN  LOTS  AND  SUBDIVISIONS. 

1.  Why  are  government  lots  used  in  a  sec- 
tion? 

2.  How  many  such  lots  in  any  one  section? 

3.  Can  you  describe  any  regular  part  of  a 
section  1 

4.  Why  is  it  necessary  to  plat  town  sites! 

5.  What  is  a  plat? 

6.  Who  owns  the  streets  in  a  town? 

7.  What  is  a  block! 

8.  What  difference  between  lot  of  a  block 
and  lot  of  a  section! 

9.  Where  is  the  corner  of  a  farm  marked? 

10.  Where  is  the  corner  of  a  block  marked? 

11.  Who  names  the  town  when  it  is  orga- 
nized? 

12.  What  is  an  addition  to  a  city? 

13.  May  one  man  establish  more  than  one 
addition? 

14.  How   may   different   additions   be   dis- 
tinguished ? 

15.  What  advantage  in  having  wide  streets  ? 

16.  What  advantage  in  having  park  sites? 

17.  What  advantage  in  having  diagonal  ave- 
nues? 

19 


290         LAND  SUEVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

18.  Would  it  be  better  in  planning  a  town 
to  have  the  streets  parallel  with  the  railroad  or 
that  they  should  run  direct  north  and  south? 

19.  How   is    Washington,    D.    C.,   planned? 
Salt  Lake  City?    Indianapolis? 

20.  What  about  the  streets  of  Boston,  New 
York,  Philadelphia? 


STUDENT'S  REVIEW  TEST.  291 


REVIEW  TEST  FOR  CHAPTER  VIII. 

DESCRIPTION    OP   LAND. 

1.  What  is  the  first  division  of  land  in  a  sur- 
vey? 

2.  What  is  a  government  lot  in  a  section? 

3.  What  sections  have  government  lots? 

4.  How  many  such  lots  in  a  section? 

5.  Explain  difference  between  government 
lot  and  city  lot? 

6.  What  four  things  are  considered  in  prop- 
erly locating  a  section? 

7.  In  what  direction  do  the  prime  meridians 
extend? 

8.  How  many  prime  meridians  in  the  United 
States  ? 

9.  Which  prime  meridian  governs  the  sur- 
vey of  the  land  in  your  county? 

10.  How  is  land  described   which   has   not 
been  surveyed  by  the  rectangular  system? 

11.  What  part  of  the  United  States  does  not 
employ  this  system? 

12.  What  is  meant  by  a  natural  monument 
in  survey? 

13.  Explain  the  term  north  forty  degrees 
east,  ten  chains. 

14.  In  which  directions  are  the  degrees  of 
variation  always  read? 


292         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

15.  What  system  of  land  description  is  the 
most  exact? 

16.  What  method  of  description  is  the  short- 
est! 

17.  Are  any  two  sections  in  the  United  States 
described  the  same? 

18.  Why    should    particular     attention    be 
given  the  description  of  the  property  in  making 
a  conveyance? 

19.  What  is  meant  by  the  north  thirty-five 
acres  of  a  tract? 

20.  How  else  could  it  be  described? 


STUDENT'S  REVIEW  TEST.  293 


REVIEW  TEST  FOR  CHAPTER  IX. 

DEFICIENT   DESCRIPTIONS. 

1.  What  are  deficient  descriptions? 

2.  How  important  are  they? 

3.  Distinguish  between  locating  and  describ- 
ing land. 

4.  What  is  meant  by  the  legal  description  of 
a  property? 

5.  What  is  meant  by  a  link  in  a  title? 

6.  What  is  a  chain  of  title  ? 

7.  What  method  of  land  description  is  the 
simpler? 

8.  What  effect  has  a  wrong  description  in  a 
conveyance  ? 

9.  May   an   original  conveyance  be   correct 
and  the  record  wrong? 

10.  Are  there  any  misdescriptions   in  the 
title  in  which  you  are  interested? 

11.  Will  a  wrong  description  in  a  title  ever 
annoy  the  owner? 

12.  How  may  such  errors  be  corrected? 

13.  When  is  the  best  time  to  correct  these 
mistakes  ? 

14.  Why  should  a  description  of  a  property 
be  exact? 

15.  Are  two  different  properties  ever  de- 
scribed the  same? 


294         LAND  SUBVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

16.  Do  any  two  sections  in  the  United  States 
ever  have  the  same  description  throughout? 

17.  They  may  differ  in  only  one  particular, 
what  is  it? 

18.  Why  should  a  description  not  refer  to  a 
temporary  monument? 

19.  Explain  what  are  monuments  of  survey. 

20.  Distinguish  between  the  natural  monu- 
ments and  artificial  monuments  of  survey. 


STUDENT'S  REVIEW  TEST.  295 


REVIEW  TEST  FOR  CHAPTER  X. 

ORIGIN   OF   INDIVIDUAL,   OWNERSHIP. 

1.  What  was  the  feudal  system? 

2.  How  did  a  lord  hold  land? 

3.  Could  a  lord  dispose  of  his  holdings? 

4.  What  extent  of  territory  did  King  James 
grant  to  the  Virginia  colony? 

5.  What  ownership  had  the  Indians  before 
the  coming  of  white  men? 

7.    What  right  had  the  Indian  in  possession 
against  the  whites? 

7.  How  did  the  European  countries  divide 
America  by  discovery  ? 

8.  What  was  the  western  limit  of  the  United 
States  at  the  time  of  the  Revolution? 

9.  When   was    the    Louisiana  Purchase  ac- 
quired and  what  did  it  comprise? 

10.  What   other   territory  has    the   United 
States  acquired  and  how? 

11.  When  were  free  holds  created? 

12.  How  were  individual  ownerships  prior  to 
the  Declaration  of  Independence  confirmed? 

13.  When  new  territory  is  acquired  by  the 
United  States,  in  whom  is  the  title  ? 

14.  How  does  the  United  States  government 
dispose  of  land? 


296         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

15.  Do  any  of  our  titles  go  back  of  Govern- 
ment ownership  ? 

16.  When  the  United  States  Government  ac- 
quires a  body  of  land  how  is  it  made  ready  for 
settlement? 

17.  What  records  have  we  of  America  prior 
to  discovery  by  Columbus'? 

18.  Of  the  Philippine  possessions,  does  the 
United  States  own  all  the  land? 

19.  Why  was  it  difficult  for  the  colonists  to 
unite  into  one  Government? 

20.  What  did  Washington  mean  when  he 
said,  "We  are  one  to-day  and  thirteen  to-mor- 
row?*' 


STUDENT'S  REVIEW  TEST.  297 


EEVIEW  TEST  FOB  CHAPTER  XI. 

EXCHANGE  OP  OWNEESHIP. 

1.  What  is  meant  by  the  Public  Domain? 

2.  What  is  meant  by  ownership  of  land? 

3.  Distinguish  between   real   and   personal 
property. 

4.  When  A.  sells  his  farm  to  B.  what  is  sold? 

5.  How  was  the  early  evidence  of  sale  se- 
cured ? 

6.  How  is  it  accomplished  now? 

7.  What  is  meant  by,  "This  indenture  wit- 
nesseth?" 

8.  Does  the  soil  ever  become  personal  prop- 
erty and  is  it  carried  away  when  sold? 

9.  What  is  a  deed? 

10.  What  four  special  facts  does  it  show? 

11.  What  is  a  will? 

12.  In  what  does  it  differ  from  a  deed? 

13.  Why  is  the  law  necessary  to  complete  a 
transfer  by  a  will? 

14.  By  what  two  methods   are  land  titles 
transferred? 

15.  Explain  how  a  title  to  land  may  be  trans- 
ferred against  the  wishes  of  the  owner? 

16.  What  precaution  should  a  purchaser  of 
land  observe  at  time  of  transaction? 

17.  Is  any  one  competent  to  prepare  a  deed  ? 


298         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

18.  What  precaution  is  necessary  when  land 
is  transferred  by  operation  of  law? 

19.  What  is  meant  by  the  saying,  "  Penny 
wise  and  Pound  foolish?" 

20.  How  may  it  be   applied  to   purchasing 
land? 


STUDENT'S  REVIEW  TEST.  299 


REVIEW  TEST  FOR  CHAPTER  XII. 

RECORD   OF   OWNERSHIP. 

1.  How  long  have  public  records  been  kept? 

2.  What  condition  demanded  public  records ? 

3.  May  titles  be  proved  by  original  instru- 
ments ? 

4.  Why  is  not  such  a  method  practical? 

5.  Who  is  the  recorder  in  your  county? 

6.  What  are  the  recorder's  duties? 

7.  Of  what  benefit  is  a  public  record? 

8.  What  effect  if  an  original  instrument  be 
lost? 

9.  Are  all  deeds  recorded? 

10.  Should  a  deed  be  recorded  right  away? 

11.  Do   all   states   have   similar   recording 
acts? 

12.  Are  the  original  deeds  preserved  by  the 
recorder? 

13.  What  is  a  mortgage? 

14.  Should  it  be  recorded  and  why? 

15.  Is  a  title  transferred  by  will?    Explain. 

16.  How  transferred  where  no  will  is  found? 

17.  Are  methods  in  England  similar  to  our 
own? 

18.  What  is  meant  by  constructive  notice? 

19.  Does  possession  determine    ownership? 

20.  How  is  the  payment  of  a  mortgage  estab- 
lished? 


300         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 
EEVIEW  TEST  FOE  CHAPTER  XIII. 

THE  ABSTRACT  OF  TITLE  EXPLAINED. 

1.  What  is  an  abstract  of  title? 

2.  How  should  it  be  arranged? 

3.  What  is  an  abstractor? 

4.  What  is  an  examiner?     A  conveyancer? 

5.  What  conditions  led  to  the  making  of  ab- 
stracts ? 

6.  Distinguish  abstract  from  title. 

7.  What  is  a  merchantable  abstract? 

8.  Distinguish  between  English  and  Ameri- 
can abstracts. 

9.  Does  the  abstract  guarantee  a  good  title  ? 

10.  Are  all  abstracts  prepared  alike? 

11.  Is  an  abstractor  liable  for  error? 

12.  When  sale  is  made  must  an  abstract  be 
furnished? 

13.  Who  owns  the  abstract? 

14.  What  effect  of  title  where  new  counties 
are  organized? 

15.  If  county  records  are  destroyed,  what 
importance  is  an  abstract? 

16.  What    about    abbreviations    in    an    ab- 
stract? 

17.  Who  may  prepare  abstracts? 

18.  In  case  of  a  loan,  who  holds  the  abstract  ? 

19.  Is  a  county  recorder  necessarily  a  good 
abstractor? 

20.  What  equipment  is  necessary  for  a  com- 
petent abstractor? 


STUDENT'S  REVIEW  TEST.  301 


REVIEW  TEST  FOR  CHAPTER  XIV. 

THE   NEED  OP  AN  ABSTRACT. 

1.  What  form  of  wealth  is  most  indestructi- 
ble? 

2.  Why  is  wealth  of  personal  property  lia- 
ble to  loss? 

3.  What  should  a  purchaser  of  real  estate 
especially  observe? 

4.  How  may  he  make  sure  of  protection? 

5.  What  is  a  merchantable  title? 

6.  What  is  meant  by  buying  a  lawsuit? 

7.  What  one  instrument  will  prove  a  title? 

8.  Will  a  warranty  deed  cure  a  title  of  de- 
fects and  make  a  purchaser  safe  ? 

9.  Should  a  purchaser  inform  himself  as  to 
the  condition  of  a  title  before  closing  his  deal? 

10.  How  may  he  do  so? 

11.  Of  what  advantage  is  it? 

12.  Distinguish  between  making  and  exam- 
ining an  abstract? 

13.  Does  the  same  party  perform  both  du- 
ties? 

14.  Give  at  least  two  reasons  why  a  title 
may  prove  defective. 

15.  Does  an  abstract  insure  the  title? 

16.  How  may  one  best  avoid  trouble  in  his 
title? 


302         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

17.  Do  abstracts  deal  with  present  or  future 
interests  ! 

18.  When  should  a  purchaser  of  a  property 
demand  an  abstract! 

19.  When  a  buyer  secures  an  abstract,  what 
should  he  do  with  it! 

20.  Which  should  be  secured  first,  an  insur- 
ance policy  on  the  house  or  an  abstract  of  title ! 


STUDENT'S  REVIEW  TEST.  303 


REVIEW  TEST  FOR  CHAPTER  XV. 

THE  ABSTRACT  AND  THE  ABSTRACTED. 

1.  In  whom  is  the  source  of  title  to  land  in 
the  United  States. 

2.  Are   all   abstracts  arranged   alike?    Ex- 
plain. 

3.  Are  all  abstracts  the  same  size? 

4.  Why  are  some  abstracts  so  much  larger 
than  others? 

5.  Are   all   abstracts  constructed   with   the 
same  completeness? 

6.  Can  an  attorney  form  an  opinion  of  the 
title  from  the  abstract  alone? 

7.  What  is  a  history  of  a  title  ? 

8.  Do  abstracts  show  any  errors  of  a  title? 

9.  Does  the  abstract  cure  the  defects  shown? 

10.  How  only  may  we  know  the  condition  of 
a  title? 

11.  If  an  owner  knows  all  who  have  owned 
his  property,  is  he  safe  to  assume  his  title  is 
good? 

12.  When  should  an  abstract  be  had? 

13.  When  may  defects  be  most  easily  cor- 
rected? 

14.  Why  should  errors  be  adjusted  now? 

15.  What  precaution  should  be  observed  at 
every  purchase? 


304         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

16.  "VVTien    should    every    abstract    begin? 
Why? 

17.  What  is  the  certificate  of  an  abstract? 

18.  Why  should  an  abstracter  be  competent 
and  reliable! 

19.  How  do  the  abstracter  and  attorney  com- 
pare as  to  reliability?    As  to  skill? 

20.  Should  an  abstracter  pass  on  the  valid- 
ity of  the  title?    Explain. 


STUDENT'S  REVIEW  TEST.  305 


REVIEW  TEST  FOR  CHAPTER  XVI. 

A    SAMPLE    ABSTRACT. 

1.  What  is  the  caption  to  an  abstract? 

2.  Where  should  an  abstract  begin? 

3.  Why  should  instruments  of  transfer  be 
acknowledged? 

4.  How  many  links  in  the  chain  of  title  ex- 
hibited by  this  abstract? 

5.  Why  is  number  fourteen  a  weak  link  in 
the  title? 

6.  Some  abstracters  arrange  all  deeds  first 
and  mortgages  and  releases  last.    Why  would 
such  an  arrangement  be  better  than  the  one 
here  employed,  every  transaction  in  chronologi- 
cal order? 

7.  Have   you   ever    examined    an    abstract 
made  up  in  the  regular  course  of  trade? 

8.  What  is  peculiar  about  transfer  number 
four? 

his 
X 
mark 

9.  What  special  value  of  the  note  in  number 


10.    Why  should  care  be  exercised  in  getting 
number  seven  recorded? 


20 


306         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

11.  Under    what    condition    would    number 
eight  be  cancelled? 

12.  If  Mr.  Booth  owned  other  land  could  Mr. 
Lambert  sell  it  also! 

13.  How  should  the  grantee  in  number  nine 
be  expressed! 

14.  What  is  the  law  of  foreclosure  in  your 
state  !    Get  your  abstractor  to  explain  it  to  you. 

15.  Why  is  not  the  affidavit  at  number  four- 
teen executed  under  an  oath! 

16.  What  is  a  plat  and  why  is  it  needed! 

17.  What  is  the  certificate  of  an  abstract  and 
of  what  importance  is  it! 

18.  Why  is  an  abstract  not  complete  without 
a  certificate! 

19.  Why  is  it  best  to  name  the  parties  as  to 
whom  judgments  are  certified  against! 

20.  Have  you  thoroughly  mastered  the  sec- 
ond section  of  this  volume  and  do  you  under- 
stand what  an  abstract  of  title  is  and  why  it  is 
needed? 


STUDENT'S  BEVIEW  TEST.  307 


REVIEW  TEST  FOE  CHAPTER  XVII. 

TITLES  TO  REAL  PROPERTY. 

1.  What  is  meant  by  the  title? 

2.  What  are  the  two  classes  of  titles  as  to 
source  ? 

3.  Does  the  discovery  of  land  constitute  ti- 
tle to  it? 

4.  May  an  individual  hold  an  original  title? 

5.  By  what  two  ways  are  titles  transferred? 

6.  What  is  meant  by  title  by  purchase? 

7.  What  is  meant  by  a  dedication? 

8.  What  is  accretion  and  reliction? 

9.  What  is  a  perfect  title? 

10.  Does  a  good  abstract  insure  a  good  title  ? 

11.  In  whom  is  the  source  of  English  titles  ? 
American? 

12.  What  is  a  merchantable  title? 

13.  May  an  individual  be  dispossessed  of  his 
land  even  when  he   has  committed  no  misde- 
meanor? 

14.  What  is  the  fee? 

15.  Name  some  lesser  estates  than  the  fee? 

16.  Which  estate  is  the  more  valuable  and 
why? 

17.  What  is  an  easement? 

18.  Explain  a  patent  as  applied  to  real  prop- 
erty? 


308         LAND  SUEVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

19.  Under  what  conditions  does  the  United 
States  grant  land? 

20.  When  has  the    United    States    Govern- 
ment acquired  territory  in  the  past?    How  was 
it  acquired  in  each  instance? 


STUDENT'S  REVIEW  TEST.  309 


REVIEW  TEST  FOR  CHAPTER  XVIIL 

ALIENATION   OP   TITLES. 

1.  What  was  the  early  theory  of  land  owner- 
ship? 

2.  What  is   the  idea  of  ownership  in   the 
United  States!    , 

3.  What  is  the  source  of  derivative  titles  in 
the  United  States? 

4.  What  is  meant  by  alienation  of  titles  ? 

5.  When  were  our  titles  freed  from  the  Brit- 
ish crown? 

6.  Was  the  original  territory  of  the  United 
States  the  same  size  as  now? 

7.  What  was  the  first  great  addition? 

8.  Describe  the  other  acquisitions  of  terri- 
tory. 

9.  Has  the  United  States  Government  kept 
any  territory  for  its  own  use  or  what  use  has 
been  made  of  it? 

10.  What  is  meant  by  homesteading? 

11.  Describe  the  method  of  purchasing  land 
by  tree  claims. 

12.  What  is  a  land  warrant  and  its  value? 

13.  What  has  our  Government  done  for  the 
public  schools? 

14.  What  did  Congress  do  to  encourage  in- 
ternal improvements? 


310         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

15.  What  lias  Congress  done  in  individual 
cases  of  award? 

16.  What  is  meant  by  pre-emption  right? 

17.  When  does  the  right  of  transfer  from 
one  individual  to  another  begin? 

18.  What  was  the  donation  system  of  land 
purchase  ? 

19.  Name  some  great  internal  improvements 
made  possible  by  Governmental  legislation? 

20.  What  territory  has   not  been  alienated 
but  is  yet  vested  in  the  United  States  Govern- 
ment? 


STUDENT'S  REVIEW  TEST.  311 


REVIEW  TEST  FOR  CHAPTER  XIX. 

CONVEYANCING  BY  INDIVIDUALS. 

1.  What  are  Derivative  titles'? 

2.  Wliat  is  the  first  record  of  conveyance? 

3.  What  is  livery  of  seizen? 

4.  Is  the  right  of  conveyance  between  indi- 
viduals old  or  new? 

5.  What  is  meant  by  feudal  tenure? 

6.  When  did  right  of  conveyancing  in  Amer- 
ica begin! 

7.  What  degree  of  estate  may  be  transfer- 
red? 

8.  What  is  a  life  estate? 

9.  What  is  an  estate  of  inheritance? 

10.  What  is  an  estate  in  fee  simple? 

11.  What  is  a  homestead  estate? 

12.  What  is  a  dower  estate? 

13.  May  a  homestead  or  dower  be  inherited 
or  sold? 

14.  What  is  the  dower  estate  in  your  state? 

15.  What  is  an  estate  for  years? 

16.  What  is  a  remainder? 

17.  What  is  a  reversion? 

18.  What  is  a  future  estate? 

19.  What   are   joint   tenants?     Tenants    in 
common  ? 

20.  What  is  a  conditional  estate? 


312         LAND  SUBVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 


REVIEW  TEST  FOR  CHAPTER  XX. 

DEEDS. 

1.  What  is  a  deed? 

2.  Name  at  least   six  essential   parts   of   a 
deed. 

3.  Define  grantor,  grantee,  vendor,  vendee. 

4.  Why  is  a  deed  to  the  heirs  of  a  living  per- 
son void? 

5.  Why  does  a  deed  executed  in  blank  not 
convey  title? 

6.  Name  two  forms  of  deeds. 

7.  Explain  a  deed  of  trust. 

8.  What  is  a  court  deed? 

9.  Does  a  deed  from  the  court  make  a  good 
title? 

10.  What  amount  of  consideration  should  a 
deed  express? 

11.  What   effect   will    a   wrong  description 
have  in  a  conveyance? 

12.  Is  a  signature  with  pencil  legal? 

13.  Can  a  "squire"  draft  a  deed? 

14.  Does  the  election   of   a   justice    of   the 
peace  qualify  (?)  him  to  write  deeds  and  other 
instruments  of  conveyance? 

15.  How  may  an  error  in  a  recorded  deed 
be  corrected? 


STUDENT'S  REVIEW  TEST.  313 

16.  What  is  the  result  of  unskilled  scriven- 
ers attempting  to  write  conveyances? 

17.  What  restrictions  are  placed  on  gran- 
tors? 

18.  Do  the  same  restrictions  apply  to  gran- 
tees? 

,19.    What  about  the  delivery  of  a  deed? 
20.    What  are  the  more  common  errors  that 
occur  in  the  drafting  of  a  deed? 


314         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 


REVIEW  TEST  FOR  CHAPTER  XXI. 

MORTGAGES  AND  RELEASES. 

1.  What  is  a  mortgage? 

2.  What  about  their  early  use  and  payment? 

3.  Why  was  equity  interposed  for  benefit  of 
the  debtor? 

4.  What  is  meant  by  equity  of  redemption? 

5.  What  is  meant  by  foreclosure  of  a  mort- 
gage! 

6.  Under  what  condition  may  a  debtor  re- 
cover his  property? 

7.  What  is  meant  by  a  cutthroat  mortgage? 

8.  What  is  known  as  the  law  day? 

9.  May  a  man  mortgage  a  property  he  does 
not  own? 

10.  What  effect  if  he  afterwards  acquire  the 
title? 

11.  What  is  the  condition  of  defeasance? 

12.  Is  any  other  instrument  executed  with 
the  mortgage? 

13.  May  an  owner  sell  a  property  he  has 
mortgaged  ? 

14.  What  is  an  equity?    What  is  its  value? 

15.  What  is  a  merger  and  how  does  it  oper- 
ate? 

16.  What  is  the  difference  between  a  mort- 
gage and  trust  deed? 


STUDENT'S  REVIEW  TEST.  315 

17.  Of  two  mortgages  on  the  same  property, 
which  is  first? 

18.  What  is   a  vendor's   lien  and  how  ob- 
tained? 

19.  Distinguish  between  purchase  mortgage 
and  others? 

20.  How  is  a  mortgage  lien  released?    Give 
three  ways? 


316         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 


REVIEW  TEST  FOB  CHAPTER  XXII. 

INTESTATE  ESTATES. 

1.  By  what  two  ways  is  title  transferred? 

2.  What  is  meant  by  law  of  distribution? 

3.  What  rule  or  law  governs  the  division  of 
property  on  the  death  of  an  owner? 

4.  Where  is  a  person's  home  said  to  be? 

5.  What  is  the  law  of  descent  of  your  own 
state? 

6.  How  do  children  by  adoption  inherit? 

7.  What  is  the  law  of  inheritance  for  post- 
humous children? 

8.  Is  there  any  difference  in  the  inheritance 
or  descent  of  title  to  real  and  personal  prop- 
erty? 

9.  If  a  person  dies  leaving  debts  or  uncom- 
pleted contracts,  how  are  the  debts  paid  or  the 
contracts  finished? 

10.  What  is  the  personal  representative  of 
the  decedent  called? 

11.  Are  the  heirs  compelled  to  pay  the  debts 
of  an  ancestor? 

12.  How  and  by  what  process  may  the  lands 
of  an  intestate  be  divided  among  the  heirs? 

13.  When  the  decedent  leaves  a  will  devis- 
ing certain  tracts  to  the  separate  heirs,  do  they 
receive  such  property  free  of  any  debts? 


STUDENT'S  REVIEW  TEST.  317 

14.  Before  a  partition  of  an  estate  can  be 
had  what  process  must  be  completed  and  why? 

15.  Can  an  estate  be  divided  without  aid  of 
the  court? 

16.  May  a  minor  heir  receive  his  share  of 
the  estate? 

17.  Where  the  lands  of  an  intestate  cannot 
be  divided  among  his  heirs  how  is  the  estate  dis- 
tributed? 

18.  What  is  meant  by  right  of  dower?    What 
is  a  homestead? 

19.  In  what  amount  do  such  rights  exist  in 
your  state? 

20.  When  do  such  rights  cease? 


318         LAND  SUEVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 


REVIEW  TEST  FOR  CHAPTER  XXIII. 


1.  What  is  a  will? 

2.  Who  may  make  a  will? 

3.  May   a  will   once   written   be   revoked? 
How? 

4.  Define  devisee,  legatee,  bequest,  testator, 
testatrix? 

5.  What  is  a  codicil?    What  is  its  effect? 

6.  What  effect  if  a  testator  acquires  proper- 
ty after  making  his  will? 

7.  Distinguish  between  will  and  testament. 

8.  What  different  interests  in  land  may  be 
devised? 

9.  Is  a  will  equal  to  a  deed  in  passing  title  to 
land? 

10.  How  is  a  devise  affected  by  a  legacy? 

11.  How  are  both  affected  by  debts  of  the 
testator? 

12.  Why  is  it  necessary  to  probate  a  will? 

13.  When  witnesses  to  a  will  have  died  be- 
fore the  testator,  how  is  the  will  proved? 

14.  What  is  the  effect  of  a  misdescription 
of  property  in  a  will? 

15.  Who  may  write  wills  ? 

16.  Who  should  write  wills?    Why? 


STUDENT'S  REVIEW  TEST.  319 

17.  Where  is  a  will  probated  as  to  Court? 
as  to  place? 

18.  Define  a  nuncupative  will ;  a  holographic 
will. 

19.  Where  an  executor  declines  to  act  how 
is  the  estate  settled? 

20.  Where  a  testator  leaves  two  wills  which 
one  is  considered  the  true  will? 


320         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 


REVIEW  TEST  FOR  CHAPTER  XXIV. 

JUDICIAL  SALES. 

1.  What  is  the  " golden  rule"  as  to  payment 
of  debts! 

2.  What  is  the  legal  rule  as  to  such  pay- 
ment? 

3.  If  a  man  refuses  to  pay  an  account,  is 
there  any  method  to  enforce  payment? 

4.  What  was  the  early  New  England  plan  to 
enforce  payment? 

5.  What  is  the  process  called  when  mort- 
gaged lands  are  sold  for  debt? 

6.  Explain  the  several  steps  to  accomplish 
the  sale? 

7.  Is  any  property  relieved  or  exempt  from 
forced  sale? 

8.  What  property  in  your  state  is  so  re- 
served? 

9.  If  a  man's  property  is  once  sold,  may  he 
have  it  returned? 

10.  How  is   the   return   accomplished   and 
what  is  it  called? 

11.  What  is  the  rule  in  regard  to  payment 
of  tax? 

12.  What  is  the  extra  cost  if  taxes  are  not 
paid  promptly? 


STUDENT'S  REVIEW  TEST.  321 

13.  Is  it  the  duty  of  vendor  or  vendee  to 
know  a  title  is  good! 

14.  Is  a  warranty  deed  all  that  is  needed  in  a 
sale  of  real  estate? 

15.  Whose  duty  is  it  to  furnish  an  abstract 
and  why? 

16.  When   a   purchaser   gets   the   abstract, 
what  next! 

17.  What  guaranty  is  behind  a  deed  from 
the  court! 

18.  What  care  should  a  purchaser  observe 
in  any  deed? 

19.  What  is  the  mortgage  law  in  your  own 
state? 

20.  Has  your  title  ever  gone  through  a  judi- 
cial sale  of  any  kind? 


21 


322         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 


REVIEW  TEST  FOE  CHAPTER  XXV. 

LEASEHOLDS  AND  MINOR  ESTATES. 

1.  Can  a  lease  be  inherited? 

2.  What  is  the  owner  of  a  lease  right  called  f 

3.  What  is  the  owner  of  a  leased  property 
called? 

4.  Will  a  lease  on  a  property  affect  its  trans- 
fer?   How? 

5.  Is  a  lease  hold  real  or  personal  prop- 
erty? 

6.  How  are  the  privileges  of  a  tenant  de- 
nned? 

7.  Must  leases  of  land  be  in  writing? 

8.  When  shall  a  tenant  vacate  a  property? 

9.  What  rights  has  a  tenant  against  a  new 
owner? 

10.  Should  a  lease  be  recorded ?    Why? 

11.  What  are  oil  leases?    Gas  leases?    Coal 
rights  ? 

12.  Does  a  coal  or  oil  lease  differ  from  a 
surface  lease? 

13.  Can  a  surface  be  sold  after  the  coal  has 
been  removed? 

14.  What  are  easements? 

15.  May  an  easement  be  sold  or  transferred  ? 

16.  Can  an  easement  injure  one  property  and 
benefit  another?    Explain? 


STUDENT'S  REVIEW  TEST.  323 

17.  What  is  a  bond  for  a  deed  I 

18.  What  are  defects  and  flaws  in  a  title? 

19.  May  they  be  removed  or  remedied? 

20.  What  is  required  of  a  purchaser  as  to  his 
title? 


324         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 


REVIEW  TEST  FOE  CHAPTER  XXVI. 

ADVERSE   TITLES. 

1.  What  is  meant  by  adverse  titles? 

2.  May  an  adverse  title  be  transferred  by 
deed  and  by  inheritance? 

3.  How  may  an  adverse  title  be  harmonized  ? 

4.  What  effect  has  a  wrong  description  in  a 
deed? 

5.  How  may  such  error  be  adjusted? 

6.  What  is  meant  by  adverse  possession? 

7.  Does  an  adverse  title  produce  an  adverse 
possession? 

8.  What  is  meant  by  statute  of  limitation? 

9.  What  is  the  period  of  limitation  in  your 
state  ? 

10.  Will  the  adverse  possession  for  the  full 
period  of  limitation  give  a  good  title! 

11.  Must  the  full  period  be  by  one  man  only? 

12.  What  restriction  as  to  the  law  of  limi- 
tation? 

13.  What  is  a  suit  to  quiet  title? 

14.  What  is  the  theory  of  its  effectiveness? 

15.  What  care  must  be  exercised  in  such 
suit? 

16.  What   recourse   have  materialmen   and 
mechanics  for  collection  of  accounts  due  them? 


STUDENT'S  REVIEW  TEST.  325 

17.  Which  condition  should  an  examiner  con- 
sider the  possibility  of  an  adverse  claim  or 
the  probability  of  its  appearance? 

18.  "Why  does  the  law  of  limitation  not  run 
against  minors  and  lunatics'? 

19.  What  is  meant  by  a  color  of  title? 

20.  What  is  a  cloud  on  a  title  and  how  is  it 
removed? 


326         LAND  SUBVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 


REVIEW  TEST  FOB  CHAPTER  XXVII. 

LAND  VALUES  AND  THEIR  INCREASE. 

1.  What  did  Grover  Cleveland  say  of  the 
value  of  land! 

2.  From  what  source  is  all  wealth  obtained? 

3.  What  conditions  gave  rise  to  specialized 
labor! 

4.  What  conditions  called  forth  the  better 
and  larger  means  of  transportation? 

5.  What  condition  demanded  and  promoted 
our  mail  service? 

6.  Is  there  any  value  in  forest  tracts  after 
the  removal  of  the  timber?    How,  or  why? 

7.  Which  division  of  the  earth  is  most  valua- 
ble and  why? 

8.  What  opportunity  for  increased  value  in 
farm  land  and  how? 

9.  How  do  orchard  lands  excel  as  to  values 
and  why? 

10.  What  mines  are  the  most  valuable?    Ex- 
plain. 

11.  May  a  farmer  produce  crops  and  another 
mine  the  coal  below  the  same  surface? 

12.  How  deep  does  a  farm  extend?     How 
high? 

13.  In  what  way  may  the  greatest  wealth  be 
obtained  from  the  earth? 


STUDENT'S  REVIEW  TEST.  327 

14.  Are  there  any  undeveloped  opportuni- 
ties for  the  man  of  to-day? 

15.  Why  is  Chicago  so  much  larger  than  the 
other  cities  of  the  United  States  except  New 
York? 

16.  What  cites  of  the  United  States  should 
continue  to  grow? 

17.  Why  is  Gary  so  well  located  for  steel 
mills? 

18.  What  caused  the  growth  of  Minneapolis  ? 

19.  What  effect  has  the  increase  of  popula- 
tion on  the  increase  of  grains  raised? 

20.  Is  an  abstract  needed  in  the  purchase 
of  a  coal  mine  or  a  city  lot  as  much  as  in  the 
buying  of  a  farm? 


328         LAND  SUEVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 


REVIEW  TEST  FOE  CHAPTER  XXVIII. 

TITLE    INSURANCE    AND    GUARANTY    CERTIFICATES. 

1.  Explain  the  difference  between  an  ab- 
stract of  title  and  tbe  attorney's  opinion  on  a 
title. 

2.  What  is  the  advantage  of  having  an  ab- 
stract? 

3.  Will  an  abstract  insure  an  owner  against 
loss? 

4.  What  are  guaranty  or  title  insurance  com- 
panies ? 

5.  What  is  the  process  in  issuing  title  insur- 
ance policies? 

6.  Are  policies  issued  for  other  purposes  ex- 
cept against  loss  of  title?    Explain. 

7.  Can  a  title  insurance  policy  keep  an  owner 
from  having  his  property  taken  from  him? 

8.  What  is  meant  by  probating  an  estate? 
Is  it  necessary  if  the  deceased  left  a  will? 

9.  Name    some    guaranty    companies    you 
know? 

10.  How  is  it  possible  for  an  abstract  to 
show  a  good  title  and  yet  the  title  be  defective. 

11.  Is  it  any  advantage  after  having  an  ab- 
stract to  also  get  a  certificate  or  policy  of  in- 
surance? 


STUDENT'S  REVIEW  TEST.  329 

12.  Why  can  a  company  better  afford  to 
carry  the  risk  of  loss  than  the  owner  of  a  prop- 
erty? 

13.  Do  you  know  of  any  case  where  a  deed 
or  mortgage  was  forged? 

14.  Will  the  deed  of  a  minor  convey  his 
property? 

15.  What  right  in  your  state  has  the  surviv- 
ing spouse  in  the  property  owned  by  the  de- 
ceased husband  or  wife? 


330          LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 


REVIEW  TEST  FOR  CHAPTER  XXIX. 

THE   TORRENS   SYSTEM    OF    LAND   REGISTRATION. 

1.  Is  there  more  than  one  method  of  land 
transfer  ? 

2.  What  is  peculiar  of  the  English  method! 

3.  What  is  meant  by  the  law  of  primogen- 
iture? 

4.  What  is  the  condition  of  land  ownership 
in  England  and  Wales! 

5.  What  were  the  Doomsday  Books ? 

6.  Who  promoted  the  Torrens  system  of  land 
transfer  ? 

7.  Why  is  this  system  not  applicable  to  the 
United  States? 

8.  When  was  sovereignty  of  the  soil  trans- 
ferred from  the  crown  to  the  commonwealth? 

9.  What  is  the  difference  between  the  re- 
corder and  the  registrar? 

10.  Does  the  Torrens  system  dispense  with 
the  use  of  the  abstract? 

11.  Have  our  leading  Torrens  advocates  em- 
ployed the  system  in  their  own  affairs  ? 

12.  Is  the  use  of  the  Torrens  system  proof 
against  loss? 

13.  Which  offers  the  greatest  security  the 
Torrens  redemption  fund  or  the  assets  of  a  "ti- 
tle insurance  company!" 


STUDENT'S  REVIEW  TEST.  331 

14.  What  is  the  judicial  system  of  land  trans- 
fer! 

15.  What   system   is   employed   throughout 
the  United  States? 

16.  Can  you  determine  from  the  public  rec- 
ords in  England  who  is  owner  of  an  estate? 

17.  What    is    the    difference    between    the 
"owner  of  record"  and  the  "real  owner"  in 
the  U.  S.? 

18.  What  share  of  their  father's  estate  do 
the  girls  in  England  inherit? 

19.  What  is  the  real  weakness  in  such  a  law! 

20.  What  is  the  worst  feature  of  the  Tor- 
ren's  law? 


332         LAND  SUBVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 


REVIEW  TEST  FOE  CHAPTER  XXX. 

THE  WIDOW'S  ESTATE. 

1.  Does  time  interfere  with  rights  and  privi- 
leges? 

2.  Why  is  a  woman  inexperienced  in  busi- 
ness affairs? 

3.  What  is  a  homestead  and  a  homestead 
right? 

4.  What  is  the  dower  interest? 

5.  When  do  the  homestead  and  dower  inter- 
ests cease? 

6.  Is  the  homestead  and  dower  interest  the 
same  in  all  states? 

7.  Does  your  state  allow  the  above  interests 
or  does  its  laws  set  apart  a  share  in  fee? 

8.  When  an  estate  is  partitioned  does  each 
child  secure  a  separate  tract?    How? 

9.  What  reason  for  having  an  estate  so  di- 
vided? 

10.  Is  the  personal  property  divided  in  the 
same  proportion  as  the  real  estate? 

11.  Do  the  same  laws  govern  the  division  of 
the  real  estate  as  of  the  personal?    What  if  sit- 
uate in  different  states! 

12.  Does  a  widow  have  dower  in  all  lands 
ever  owned  by  her  husband?    What  exceptions? 


STUDENT'S  REVIEW  TEST-.  333 

13.  "Who  inherits  the  money  received  from 
life  insurance? 

14.  Do  the  laws  of  place  of  death  in  any 
way  control  inheritance? 

15.  Is  it  necessary  to  probate  an  estate? 
Why? 

16.  Is  it  necessary  to  employ  a  lawyer  in  the 
settlement  of  an  estate? 

17.  What  are  some  of  the  securities  that 
make  a  safe  investment? 

18.  Are  investments  offering  an  extra  high 
return  safe?    Why,  or  why  not? 

19.  What  is  the  difference  between  invest- 
ment and  speculation? 

20.  What  rule  to  apply  before  speculating? 


334         LAND  SUBVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 


GENERAL  REVIEW  OF  PART  TWO. 

1.  Between   what    township    lines    is    your 
county  situated? 

2.  Between  what  range  lines  is  your  county 
located  ? 

3.  How  many  congressional  or  school  town- 
ships in  your  county? 

4.  How  many  political   townships   in  your 
county? 

5.  Name  the  political  townships  and  locate 
each. 

6.  Give   the   description   of  the   section   in 
which  your  school  is  situated. 

7.  Locate   the   forty   acres   in   which   your 
home  is  found. 

8.  Name  your  county  capital.     Your  state 
capital. 

9.  In  what  township  is  your  county  seat  sit- 
uated ? 

10.  Through  what  townships  does  your  near- 
est railroad  extend? 

11.  What  principal  meridian  is  nearest  you? 
In  which  direction  is  it?    About  how  far? 

12.  How  far  and  in  which  direction  is  the 
base  line  you  use  in  describing  land? 

13.  How  many  acres  in  the  section  where 
vour  school  house  stands? 


STUDENT'S  REVIEW  TEST.  335 

14.  What  is  the  largest  section  in  your  coun- 
ty? 

15.  How  many  sections  in  your  county? 

16.  Section  sixteen  and  later  Section  thirty- 
six  also  was  set  apart  for  school  purposes.    If 
the  land  in  your  township  embraced  in  these 
sections  had  been  kept  till  now  and  sold  at  pres- 
ent market  price,  how  much  would  it  amount 


17.  Is  there  a  secondary  base  or  correction 
line  crossing  your  county? 

18.  Have  you  ever  noticed  any  jog  corners 
in  the  road?    What  causes  them? 

19.  Do  any  townships  in  your  county  have 
no  railroad? 

20.  Bound  your  county. 

21.  Where  is  a  watershed  in  your  county? 

22.  Name  all  the  towns  in  your  county  which 
are  located  on  a  railroad. 

23.  Name  the  inland  towns  of  your  county. 

24.  Can  you  name  any  of  the  streets  in  the 
nearest  town? 

25.  What  advantage  is  it  to  have  the  streets 
named? 

26.  What    other    methods    of    telling    the 
streets  ? 

27.  Name  all  the  prime  meridians  you  can. 

28.  How  many  sections  in  the  United  States 
described   as    section    11,   township    15    north, 
range  8  east  of  the  third  principal  meridian? 


336         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

29.  When  was  your  county  first  settled? 

30.  What  foreign  country  exercised  owner- 
ship  over   your   county   prior   to   the   United 
States? 

31.  Where  do  titles  in  your  county  begin? 

32.  Are  there  any  tree  claims  in  your  coun- 
ty? 

33.  Tell  about  the  development  of  the  meth- 
ods of  land  transfer. 

34.  Is  land  ever  transferred? 

35.  When  does  ownership  of  land  begin! 

36.  Name  the  instruments  of  land  transfer! 

37.  Who  is  the  grantor?    The  grantee? 

38.  What  is  a  mortgage? 

39.  Who  is  a  mortgagor?    A  mortgagee? 

40.  What  is  a  landlord?    A  tenant? 

41.  What  is  an  abstract? 

42.  What  is  the  need  of  it? 

43.  What  is  a  lien? 

44.  What  is  a  water  right? 

45.  What  is  a  party  wall? 

46.  What  is  an  easement? 

47.  May  a  minor  own  real  estate? 

48.  May  a  minor  transfer  real  estate? 

49.  What  is  an  affidavit? 

50.  Of  what  use  are  they? 

51.  What  is  an  indenture  as  applied  to  real 
estate  ? 

52.  What  is  the  history  of  a  title  called? 

53.  From  what  is  it  prepared? 


STUDENT'S  REVIEW  TEST.  337 

54.  Who  records  deeds,  mortgages,  etc.,  in 
your  county? 

55.  Who  prepares  histories  of  titles  in  your 
county! 

56.  Name  the  different  abstractors  and  ab- 
stract companies  in  your  county. 

57.  Who  is  your  county  surveyor? 

58.  What  is  the  magnetic  pole? 

59.  Where  is  it  located? 

60.  Does  the  needle  of  the  compass  point  to- 
ward the  North  Pole? 


22 


THE  LAWS  OF  BABYLON. 

The  earliest  known  code  of  laws  was  the  code 
of  Hammurabi,  a  Babylonian  monarch  supposed 
to  have  been  compiled  about  2000  B.  C.  It  con- 
sists of  some  two  hundred  and  eighty  sections 
from  which  the  following  twelve  have  been  se- 
lected. 

As  to  lands. 

1.  If  any  one  has  taken  a  field  to  cultivate, 
and  has  not  made  grain  to  grow  in  the  field, 
he  shall  be  charged  with  not  having  done  his 
duty,  and  shall  give  grain  equal  to  that  yielded 
by  the  neighboring  field. 

2.  If  a  man  has  a  debt  and  if  the  grain  has 
not  grown  on  account  of  lack  of  water,  in  that 
year  he  shall  give  no  grain  to  the  creditor,  but 
shall  soak  his  tablet x  and  pay  no  interest  that 
year. 

3.  If  any  one  is  too  lazy  to  keep  his  dikes  in 
order  and   a  breach  is  made,  and  the   fields 
flooded,  the  man  in  whose  dike  the  breach  was 
opened  shall  replace  the  grain  destroyed. 

1.  Contracts  were  written  on  stone  or  clay  tablets.  'Soak 
his  tablet'  meant  to  wash,  cleanse  or  dissolve  the  tablet  and 
to  cancel  the  contract. 

(338) 


LAWS  OF  BABYLON.  339 

4.  If  any  one  opens  his  irrigation  canals  to 
let  in  water  and  is  careless,  and  water  floods  his 
neighbor's  field,  he  shall  measure  out  grain  to 
his  neighbor  in  proportion  to  the  yield  of  the 
neighboring  field. 

General  Laws. 

5.  If  a  doctor  has  treated  a  man,  and  has 
cured  the  man,  or  has  opened  a  tumor  and  cured 
his  eye,  he  shall  receive  ten  shekels  of  silver. 

6.  If  a  physician  has  treated  a  free-born 
man,  etc.,  and  has  caused  the  man  to  die,  or  to 
lose  his  eye,  his  hands  one  shall  cut  off. 

7.  If  a  man  strikes  another  in  a  quarrel  and 
shall  swear,  "I  did  not  strike  him  wittingly," 
he  shall  pay  the  doctor. 

8.  If  any  one  has  broken  a  hole  in  a  house, 
in  front  of  that  hole,  one  shall  kill  him  and 
bury  him. 

9.  If  any  one  has  committed  a  robbery,  and 
is  caught  he  shall  be  killed. 

10.  If  the  robber  is  not  caught,  the  man  who 
was  robbed  shall  make  claim  before   God  to 
every  thing  stolen  and  the  town  and  its  governor 
shall  give  him  back  every  thing  he  lost. 

11.  If  a  man  has  received  in  deposit,  gold, 
silver,  a  slave,  an  ox,  or  whatever  it  may  be, 
without  witness  or  contract,  he  shall  be  put  to 
death. 

12.  If  a  judge  has  delivered  a  sentence,  has 
made  a  decision  and  fixed  it  in  writing,  and  if 


340         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

afterwards  he  has  annulled  his  sentence,  that 
judge  shall  be  brought  to  judgment;  for  the 
penalty  he  inflicted,  twelve  fold  he  shall  pay; 
and  publicly  they  shall  remove  him  from  his 
judgment  seat.  Space  does  not  permit  giving 
judgment  seat. 

Space  does  not  permit  giving  others. 


LAND  MEASURE. 

1    vara    =  33  1-3  inches. 
36  varas  -  100  feet. 
1900.8  varas  =  one  mile  -  5280  feet. 
5000     varas  square  =  4428.4  acres  =  1  league. 
2688.1  varas  square  =  1280.0  acres. 
2328.0  varas  square  =    960.0  acres. 
1900.8  varas  square  =    640.0  acres. 
1451.0  varas  square  —    320.0  acres. 
1000     varas  square  =    177.1  acres  =  1  labor. 
950.4  varas  square  =    160.0  acres. 

To  reduce  varas  to  feet:  Multiply  by  100,  then 
divide  by  36. 

To  reduce  feet  to  varas :  Multiply  by  36,  then 
divide  by  100. 

To  reduce  sq.  varas  to  acres:  Multiply  by 
177,  then  cut  off  6  decimals. 

The  above  table  is  commonly  called  the  Span- 
ish system  of  land  measure.  It  is  found  ex- 
tensively in  Texas,  California  and  other  dis- 
tricts of  Spanish  origin,  and  is  universally  used 
in  Mexico. 

MEASURING  HAY  IN  A  STACK. 

There  can  be  no  set  rule  for  obtaining  the 
amount  of  hay  in  a  stack,  but  approximate  ton- 
nage may  be  determined  in  this  manner :    Meas- 
(341) 


342          LAND  SUBVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

ure  the  base  of  the  stack  each  way,  then  meas- 
ure from  the  base  on  one  side,  over  the  top  and 
to  the  base  on  the  other.  Multiply  the  length 
by  the  width  and  the  result  by  one-third  of  the 
length  over  the  top.  This  will  give  the  number 
of  cubic  feet  in  the  stack. 

The  number  of  cubic  feet  of  hay  in  a  ton 
must  be  reduced  in  proportion  to  the  time  it  has 
been  stacked.  Of  newly  stacked  hay,  before  any 
settling  takes  place,  about  five  hundred  cubic 
feet  are  required  to  make  a  ton.  Three  months 
of  settling  will  reduce  the  number  of  cubic  feet 
to  four  hundred. 

If  a  stack  is  not  put  up  on  straight  lines,  sev- 
eral over-top  measurements  must  be  made  and 
the  average  taken,  or  if  the  stack  carries  up 
straight  above  the  bulge  this  must  be  consid- 
ered. 

To  measure  hay  in  the  mow,  multiply  length, 
width  and  depth  together  and  divide  as  above 
suggested. 


INTEREST  TABLES. 


343 


6  PER  CENT  INTEREST  TABLE 


TIME 

$1 

$2 

$3 

$4 

$5 

$6 

$10 

$20 

$50 

$100 

$1,000 

f    1  

1 
2 
3 
3 
4 
5 
6 
7 
8 
8 
13 
17 
21 
25 
28 
53 
78 

25 
50 
75 
1.00 
1.25 
1.50 
1.75 
2.00 
2.25 
2.50 
2.75 
3.00 

2 
3 
5 
7 
8 
10 
12 
13 
15 
17 
25 
33 
42 
50 
55 
1.05 
1.55 

50 
1.00 
1.50 
2.00 
2.50 
3.00 
3.50 
4.00 
4.50 
5.00 
5.50 
6.00 

17 
38 
50 
67 
83 
1.00 
1.17 
1.33 
1.50 
1.67 
2.50 
3.33 
4.17 
5.00 
5.50 
10.50 
15.50 

5.00 
10.00 
15.00 
20.00 
25.00 
30.00 
35.00 
40.00 
45.00 
50.00 
55.00 
60.00 

2  

1 
1 
1 
2 
2 
2 
3 
3 
3 
5 
7 
8 
10 
11 
21 
31 

10 
20 
30 
40 
50 
60 
70 
80 
90 
1.00 
1.10 
1.20 

3  

1 
1 
1 
1 
1 
1 
2 
2 
3 
3 
4 
5 
6 
11 
16 

5 
10 
15 
20 
25 
30 
35 
40 
45 
50 
55 
60 

4  

5  

1 
1 

1 
1 
1 
1 
2 
2 
2 
3 
3 
6 
9 

3 
6 
9 
12 
15 
18 
21 
24 
27 
30 
33 
30 

6  

1 
1 
1 
1 

1 
1 

2 
2 
3 
3 
5 
8 

3 

5 

8 
10 
13 
15 

18 
20 
23 
25 
28 
30 

7     .     . 

&  8.. 

1 

1 
1 
1 
1 
2 
2 
2 
4 
6 

2 
4 
6 
8 
10 
12 
14 
16 
18 
20 
22 
24 

5  9.. 

3  10... 

1 
1 
1 
1 
2 
2 
3 
5 

2 
3 
5 
6 
8 
9 
11 
12 
14 
15 
17 
18 

15  

1 

1 
1 
1 
1 
2 
3 

1 
2 

3 
4 
5 
6 
7 
8 
9 
10 
11 
12 

20  

25  

30  

1 
1 
1 
2 

1 

1 
2 
2 
3 
3 
4 
4 
5 
5 
6 
6 

33  

63  

93  

1  

2  

3  

4.. 

«     m 

•a  5.. 

H  6.. 

§7.. 

3  8.. 

9  

10  

11  

[12  

344         LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 


To  find  interest  by  the  table  given  on  the  opposite  page 
proceed  as  follows. 

Find  the  interest  on  $1248  for  6  months  and 
15  days. 

Interest  for  $1000  for  6 months  and  15  days:  $32.50 
Interest  for   200  for  6  months  and  15  days:  6.50  (twice  $100) 
Interest  for      40  for  6  months  and  15  days:  1.30  (twice     20) 
Interest  for       8  for  6  months  and  15  days:    .26  (twice       4) 


Total  interest $40.56 

To  find  the  interest  at  7  per  cent:  First,  by  the  table  de- 
termine the  interest  at  6  per  cent,  then  add  one-sixth  to 
the  result.  If  the  rate  is  5  per  cent  subtract  the  one-sixth 
etc. 


Another  method  for  calculating  interest  at  6 
per  cent,  is  known  as  the  commercial  method, 
and  when  once  mastered  is  easier  and  shorter 
than  any  other. 

First  the  interest  on  $100  for  1  year  at  6  per  cent=$6. 
And  the  interest  on  $100  for  16  2-3  years  at  6  per  cent— $100. 
That  is,  the  interest  equals  the  principal  in  200  months, 
and  the  interest  equals  1-100  of  principal  in  2  months. 
[Two  months=60  days] 

The  interest^l-10  of  1-100  of  the  principal  in  6  days. 


INTEREST  TABLES.  345 

Find  the  interest  on  $1248  for  6  months  and 
15  days  at  6  per  cent. 

Remembering  the  interest  for  2  months  or  60  days  equals 
1-100  of  the  principal  we  have  $12.48  as  the  interest  for  2 
months  and  $37.44  equals  the  interest  for  6  months. 
[6  months  is  3  times  2  months] 

15  days  equals  X  of  60  days;  therefore  J<  of  $12.48,  or 
$3.12  equals  the  interest  for  15  days. 

$37.44  +  $3.12  =  $40.56  the  answer. 


Process— $1248 


37.44    By  this  method  few  figures 
3.12    are  needed  as  most  of  the 
process  is  mental. 


$40.56  ans. 


The  only  thing  to  remember  is  to  remove  (mentally)  the 
decimal  point  two  places  toward  the  left  and  the  result  is  the 
interest  on  the  principal  for  2  months  (or  60  days)  at  6  per 
cent.  Then  by  a  simple  multiplication  of  equal  parts,  the 
desired  result  is  obtained. 

If  the  rate  is  other  than  six  per  cent,  first  get  the  result 
at  6  per  cent  and  proceed  to  add  or  subtract  as  suggested 
above. 


346 


LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 


RATE  OF  INCOME  ON  STOCKS 

Purchased  at  the  following  prices  (par  value  being  $100) i 
and  bearing  interest  at  the  following  rates. 


Paid 

3% 

4% 

5% 

6% 

7% 

8% 

9% 

$50 

6.00 

8.00 

10.00 

12.00 

14.00 

16.00 

18.00 

55 

5.45 

7.27 

9.09 

10.90 

12.72 

14.55 

16.30 

60 

5.00 

6.67 

8.33 

10.00 

11.66 

13.33 

15.30 

65 

4.62 

6.15 

7.69 

9.23 

10.76 

12.30 

13.85 

70 

4.28 

5.71 

7.14 

8.57 

10.00 

11.42 

12.85 

75 

4.00 

5.33 

6.66 

8.00 

9.33 

10.66 

12.00 

80 

3.75 

5.00 

6.25 

7.50 

8.75 

10.00 

11.25 

85 

3.53 

4.70 

5.88 

7.05 

8.23 

9.41 

10.58 

90 

3.33 

4.44 

5.55 

6.66 

7.77 

8.88 

10.00 

91 

3.30 

4.40 

5.49 

6.59 

7.69 

8.79 

9.89 

92 

3.26 

4.34 

5.43 

6.52 

7.60 

8.70 

9.78 

93 

3.23 

4.30 

5.38 

6.45 

7.53 

8.60 

9.68 

94 

3.19 

4.26 

5.32 

6.38 

7.45 

8.51 

9.57 

95 

3.15 

4,21 

5.26 

6.31 

7.36 

8.42 

9.47 

96 

3.13 

4.17 

5.21 

6.25 

7.29 

8.33 

9.38 

97 

3.09 

4.12 

5.15 

6.18 

7.22 

8.25 

9.28 

98 

3.06 

4.08 

5.10 

6.12 

7.14 

8.16 

9.18 

99 

3.03 

4.04 

5.05 

6.06 

7.07 

8.08 

9.09 

101 

2.97 

3.96 

4.95 

5.94 

6.93 

7.92 

8.91 

102 

2.94 

3.92 

4.90 

5.88 

6.86 

7.84 

8.82 

103 

2.91 

3.88 

4.85 

5.83 

6.80 

7.77 

8.74 

104 

2.88 

3.85 

4.81 

5.77 

6.73 

7.69 

8.65 

105 

2.86 

3.80 

4.76 

5.71 

6.66 

7.61 

8.57 

106 

2.83 

3.77 

4.72 

5.66 

6.60 

7.55 

8.49 

107 

2.80 

3.74 

4.67 

5.61 

6.54 

7.48 

8.41 

108 

2.78 

3.70 

4.63 

5.56 

6.48 

7.41 

8.33 

109 

2.75 

3.67 

4.59 

5.50 

6.42 

7.34 

8.26 

110 

2.72 

3.63 

4.54 

5.45 

6.36 

7.27 

8.18 

115 

2.60 

3.48 

4.34 

5.21 

6.08 

6.95 

7.83 

120 

2.50 

3.33 

4.16 

5.00 

5.83 

6.66 

7.50 

130 

2.30 

3.07 

3.84 

4.61 

5.38 

6.15 

6.92 

140 

2.14 

2.86 

3.57 

4.28 

5.00 

5.71 

6.43 

MISCELLANEOUS  TABLES.  347 


MISCELLANEOUS  LONG  MEASURE. 

3  inches  make 1  palm 

4  inches  make 1  hand 

9  inches  make 1  span 

1 2  inches  make 1  foot 

3 . 2809  inches  make 1  metre 

18  inches  make 1  cubit 

28  inches  make 1  sacred  cubit  (nearly) 

3  feet  make 1  yard 

6  feet  make 1  fathom 

120  fathoms  make 1  cable 

The  United  States  standard  of  measure  is  a  brass  rod, 
which  at  32  degrees,  is  a  standard  yard  of  three  feet  or  thirty- 
six  inches. 

SHOEMAKER'S  MEASURE. 

Number  1  is  4.125  inches  in  length,  and  each  succeeding 
number  is  one  third  or  .333  inch  longer.  There  are  28  different 
sizes  in  two  divisions  of  numbers,  to-wit,  1  to  13  and  1  to  15 


DRY  MEASURE 

Used  to  measure  all  commodities,  such  as  fruit,  vegetables, 
grains,  coal,  etc. 

2  pints  make  1  quart  (67.2  cubic  inches) 
4  quarts  make  1  gallon  (268.8  cubic  inches) 
2  gallons  make  1  peck  (537.6  cubic  inches) 
4  pecks  make  1  bushel  (2150.4  cubic  inches) 
36  bushels  make  1  chaldron  (coal  measure) 

4  bushels  make  1  coom  (used  in  England) 
2  cooms  make  1  quarter  (used  in  England) 

5  quarters  make  1  wey  (used  in  England) 
2  weys  make  1  last  (used  in  England) 


348 


LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 


METRIC  SYSTEM 
MEASURE  OF  WEIGHT 
(Unit  Gramme.) 


Centigramme  

Grains. 
0.15432 

Oz. 
Troy. 

Lb. 
Avoir    Cwt. 

Decigramme  

1.54323 

0.003 

Gramme  

15.43235 

0  032 

0  002 

Decagramme  

154.32349 

0.321 

0.022   .  .  . 

Hectogramme  .  . 

.   1543.23488 

3.215 

0.220  0.001 

Kilogramme 15432.34880    32.150      2.204  0.019 

MEASURE  OF  LENGTH 

(Unit  Metre.) 


Millimetre  

Inches. 
0  03937 

Feet. 
0  003 

Yards.    Miles. 
0  001 

Centimetre  

0  39371 

0  032 

0  010 

Decimetre  

3.93708 

0  328 

0.109 

Metre  .  . 

39.37079 

3.280 

1.093 

Decametre 393 . 70790        32 .808        10 . 936    0 . 006 

Hectometre 3937.07900      328.089       109.363    0.062 

Kilometre..        ..39370.79000    3280.899     1093.633    0.621 


MISCELLANEOUS  TABLES.  349 


CONVENIENT  MULTIPLES  FOR  CONVERSION 

To  Convert 

Grains  to  Grammes Multiply  by  .065 

Ounces  to  Grammes "        28.35 

Pounds  to  Grammes "         "      453 .6 

Pounds  to  Kilogrammes .45 

Cwts.  to  Kilogrammes "        50.8 

Tons  to  Kilogrammes "        "    1016. 

Grammes  to  Grains "         15.4 

Grammes  to  Ounces 0.35 

Kilogrammes  to  Ounces "        35.3 

Kilogrammes  to  Pounds 2.2 

Kilogrammes  to  Cwts .02 

Kilogrammes  to  Tons "         "             .001 

Inches  to  Millimetres "        25.4 

Inches  to  Centimetres 2 .54 

Feet  to  Metres "         "           .3048 

Yards  to  Metres "                       .9144 

Yards  to  Kilometres "         "             .0009 

Miles  to  Kilometres "         "          1.6 

Millimetres  to  Inches .04 

Centimetres  to  Inches .4 

Metres  to  Feet "                    3.3 

Metres  to  Yards "         "          1.1 

Kilometres  to  Yards "    1093 .6 

Kilometres  to  Miles .62 

1  Yard  equals  0.9144  metre.     1  Square  Metre  equals  1.196 
square  yards.    I  Litre  equals  1.760  Pints  or  0.22  Gallons. 


VALUE   OF  FOREIGN   COINS   IN  UNITED   STATES 
MONEY 


Stand- 

Value in 

Country- 

ard. 

Monetary  Unit. 

U.  S.  Gold 

Dollar. 

Argent.  R. 

Gold 

Peso 

$0.96,5 

Austria-H. 

Gold 

Crown 

.20,3 

Belgium 

Gold 

Franc 

,19.3 

Bolivia 

Silver 

Boliviano 

.42,2 

Brazil 

Gold 

Milreis 

.54,6 

Canada 

Gold 

Dollar 

1.00 

Cent.  Am. 

Silver 

Peso 

.42,2 

Chili 

Gold 

Peso 

.36.5 

1  Shanghai 

.63,1 

China 

Silver 

TaeH  Haikwan 

.70,3 

[  Canton 

.68,9 

Colombia 

Gold 

Dollar 

1.00 

Costa  Rica 

Gold 

Colon 

.46,5 

Cuba 

Gold 

Peso 

.91,0 

Denmark 

Gold 

Crown 

.26,8 

Ecuador 

Gold 

Sucre 

.48,7 

Egypt 

Gold 

Pound  (100  piasters) 

4.94,3 

France 

Gold 

Franc 

.19,3 

Germany 

Gold 

Mark 

.23,8 

Great  Britain 

Gold 

Pound  sterling 

4.86,6^ 

Greece 

Gold 

Drachma 

.19,3 

Hayti 

Gold 

Gourde 

.96,5 

India 

Gold 

Pound  Sterling 

4.  86,6  M 

Italy 

Gold 

Lira 

.19,3 

Japan 

Gold 

Yen 

.49,8 

Mexico 

Silver 

Dollar 

.45,8 

Netherlands 

Gold 

Florin 

.40,2 

Newfoundland 

Gold 

Dollar 

1.01,4 

Norway 

Gold 

Crown 

.26,8 

Peru 

Gold 

Sol 

.48,7 

Portugal 

Gold 

Milreis 

1.08 

Russia 

Gold 

Ruble 

.51,5 

Spain 

Gold 

Peseta 

.19,3 

Sweden 

Gold 

Crown 

.26,8 

Switzerland 

Gold 

Franc 

.19,3 

Turkey 

Gold 

Piaster 

.04,4 

Uruguay 

Gold 

Peso 

1.03,4 

Venzuela 

Gold 

Bolivar 

.19,3 

STANDABD  TIME.  351 

STANDARD  TIME 

For  convenience  in  operating  railroad  trains  and  for 
use  by  the  public,  an  agreement  by  the  railroads  was  made 
in  1883. 

By  this  system  the  United  States  was  divided  into  four 
sections  or  belts  extending  north  and  south,  and  named 
Eastern,  Central,  Mountain  and  Pacific  respectively. 

Eastern  time  includes  that  territory  between  the  Atlantic 
Ocean  on  the  east  and  an  irregular  line  drawn  from  Detroit, 
Michigan,  to  Charleston,  South  Carolina,  its  most  southern 
extremity. 

Central  time  includes  the  district  west  from  the  last 
named  line  to  an  irregular  line  drawn  from  Bismark,  North 
Dakota,  southward  to  the  mouth  of  the  Rio  Grande  River. 

Mountain  time  covers  all  that  section  from  the  last 
named  line  to  near  the  western  boundaries  of  Idaho,  Utah, 
and  Arizona. 

Pacific  time  embraces  all  the  remaining  portion  of  the 
United  States  westward  to  the  Pacific  Ocean. 

Standard  time  is  uniform  in  each  of  the  several  districts 
throughout  a  given  division.  That  is,  it  is  the  same  time  at 
Columbus,  Ohio,  as  it  is  at  Kansas  City,  Missouri,  or  New 
Orleans,  Louisiana,  by  standard  time,  and  each  place  named 
is  one  hour  later  than  Washington,  D.  C.,  or  any  other  point 
in  the  eastern  belt. 

New  York  is  four  hours  later  than  is  San  Francisco, 
reckoned  by  standard  time;  thus,  at  12  o'clock,  noon,  at 
New  York  (eastern  time),  Chicago  is  11  o'clock,  A.M.  (central 
time);  Denver  is  10  o'clock,  A.  M.  (mountain  time),  and 
San  Francisco  is  9  o'clock,  A.  M.  (Pacific  time). 

The  true  local,  or  sun  time,  does  not  always  agree  with 
the  standard  time,  but  will  be  faster  in  the  eastern  part  of 
each  belt  or  zone  and  slower  in  the  western  portion,  varying 
in  some  instances  as  much  as  28  minutes. 

A  traveler  crossing  the  United  States  from  east  to  west 
must  continue  setting  his  watch  back  to  keep  pace  with  the 
standard  zones,  while  when  traveling  from  west  to  east,  his 
watch  must  be  advanced  at  regular  stations  or  he  will  miss 
several  hours.  The  same  experience  is  met  with  in  traveling 
around  the  world,  and  reckoning  with  the  days  of  the  week. 


352        LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 


These  sample  forms  should  be  studied  in  connection  with 
the  lessons  treating  of  their  use  and  the  student  will  do  well 
to  copy  each  one  in  full  inserting  familiar  names  in  place  of 
the  stereotype  "John  Doe,"  etc.  It  must  also  be  understood 
that  some  form  of  acknowledgment  should  be  appended  to 
each  deed,  mortgage,  and  release,  using  the  form  prescribed  by 
the  statute  of  the  state  where  the  land  to  be  transferred,  is 
located.  Thus  if  you  live  in  California  and  deed  land  in  Illinois 
use  the  Illinois  form  of  acknowledgment.  Deeds  are  often  de- 
fective by  the  use  of  the  wrong  acknowledgment,  or  wrong 
form  of  conveyance.  Remember  that  the  location  of  the  land 
governs  its  method  of  transfer  and  not  the  post  office  address  of 
the  parties  interested.  Several  forms  of  acknowledgements  are 
given  to  show  how  they  differ  in  the  various  states. 

The  American  Bar  Association,  the  American  Associa- 
tion of  Title  Men,  and  the  National  Association  of  Real  Estate 
Brokers,  are  urging  uniform  legislation  on  laws  of  Inheritance, 
Divorce  Laws  and  Laws  of  Land  Transfer,  in  order  that  the 
transfer  of  Real  Property  may  be  simplified. 

A  committee  of  nine  composed  of  members  from  each  of 
the  three  above  named  national  organizations  is  at  present 
writing  (1914)  working  along  this  line  and  it  is  hoped  some 
uniform  legislation  may  soon  be  had  to  relieve  the  many  petty 
conditions  now  existing. 

A  few  forms  of  acknowledgments  as  used  in  different 
states: 


LEGAL  AND  COMMERCIAL  FORMS.         353 

(Arkansas  form) 

State  of Arkansas, 

Clark County,     J          On   this  3d day  of       May. 

1910, before  me,  _John  Doe,  a  justice 

of  the  peace within  and  for  the  county  of 

Clark, in  the  state  of Arkansas, ap- 
peared in  person Richard  Roe, to  me  per- 
sonally well  known  as  the  person  whose  name 
appears  upon  the  within  and  foregoing  deed 

of  conveyance  as  the  party  grantor,  and  stated  that  he 

had  executed  the  same  for  the  consideration  and  purposes  therein 
mentioned  and  set  forth,  and  I  do  hereby  so  certify.  In  testi- 
mony whereof  I  have  hereunto  set  my  hand  as  such justice  of 

the  peace, in  the  county  of Clark, on  the 3d day  of 

May,  1910. John  Doe. 

(Michigan  form) 


State  of  __Michigan, 

__Jackson County,     J          Before  me,  Richard  Roe_  a 

_Notary  Public, this 12th day  of  _Mav 

f  Notarial  1  1910,  John  Doe acknowledged  the  execution 

\      Seal.    J  of  the  annexed  deed  (or  mortgage). 

Richard  Roe, 

Notary  Public. 


(Massachusetts  form) 


State  of  _Massachv setts, j 

\m: 

Suffolk County  J          Then  personally  appeard   the 

above  named  _John  Doe, and  acknowl- 

f  Notarial  1  edged  the  foregoing  instrument  to  be his 

Seal.    J  free  act  and  deed,  before  me, Richard  Roe, 

a  Notary  Public. 

Richard  Roe. 


23 


354        LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 
(Kansas  form) 


State  of  _Kansas 

Crawford County,      J          Be  it  remembered  that  on  this 

15th day  of  _June, A.  D.  1910, 

before  me,  the  undersigned  __Notary  Public 

f  Notarial  1  came  _John  Doe, who  is  personally  known 

\      Seal.    J          to  me  to  be  the  same  person  who  executed  the 

foregoing  instrument  of  writing,  and  as  such 

person  duly  acknowledged  the  execution  of 

the  same.    In  witness  whereof  I  have  hereunto  set  my  hand  and 

affixed  my  official  seal  at Pittsburg, the  day  and  year  last 

above  written.  Richard  Roe. 


(Iowa  form) 


State  of Iowa, 

i 

•  ss: 

_Daris County,  J          On    this    30th day    of 

August, A.   D.  7906, before  me,  a 

__Notary  Public,  John  Doe, and  _Mary 

f  Notarial  |          Doe, his  wife,  severally  acknowledged  the 

{      Seal.    J  execution  of  the  foregoing  deed.     In  witness 

whereof  I  have  hereunto  set  my  hand  and 
affixed  my  official  seal  the  day  and  year  afore- 
said. Richard  Roe. 


(California  form) 


State  of California, 

I 

•  ss: 

Alameda County,        J          On    this    10th day    of 

September in  the  year  1909, before 

me  personally  appeared  __John  Doe known 

f  Notarial }  to  me  (or  proved  to  me  on  the  oath  of ) 

[      Seal.    J  to  be  the  person  who  is  described  in  and  who 

executed  the  within  instrument,  and  acknowl- 
edged to  me  that  be  (or  they)  executed  the 
same.  Richard  Roe. 


ACKNOWLEDGMENTS  AND  LEGAL  FOBMS.       355 


(Montana  form) 


State  ot_Montana , 

Silver  Bow_  County,    J          On     this     «d day     of 

December, A.  D. 1907, personally  ap- 
peared before  me Richard  Roe, a  _Notary 

f  Notarial  1  Public, in  and  for  said  county,  _John  Doe 

I,      Seal.    J  personally  known  to  me  to  be  the  person  de- 

scribed in  and  who  executed  the  foregoing  in- 
strument, and  who  acknowledged  to  me  that 
he  executed  the  same  freely  and  voluntarily 
and  for  the  uses  and  purposes  therein  mentioned. 

Richard  Roe, 

Notary  Public. 


(Nebraska  form) 


State  of  _Nebraska, 

Gage County,  J          On  this 1st day  of April 

A.  D. 1906, before  me, Richard  Roe, 

a  __Notarg   Public ,    personally   came   the 

f  Notarial  |          above  named  __John  Doe, who  is  personally 

{     Seal.    J          known  (or,  on  the  oath  of ,  a 

credible  witness  for  that  purpose  by  me  duly 

sworn,  satisfactorily  proved)  to  me  to  be  the 

identical  person  whose  name  is  affixed  to  the  above  deed  as 

grantor,  and  acknowledged  the  instrument  to  be  his  voluntary 

act  and  deed. 

Witness  my  hand  and  seal  of  office  at Odia, the  date 

aforesaid.  Richard  Roe, 

Notary  Public. 


356        LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 


(Wisconsin  form) 


State  of Wisconsin, 

r 

•ss: 

Milwaukee County,    J     .      Personally    came    before    me 

this id day  of  __June,  1906, the  above 

(or  within)  named  __John  Doe and Mary 

(  Notarial  1  Doe, his  wife  (or  if  an  officer  adding  the 

Seal.     J  name  of  his  office) ,  to  me  known  to  be  the  per- 

son who  executed  the  foregoing  (or    within) 
instrument,  and  acknowledged  the  same. 
Richard  Roe, 
Notary  Public. 


BONO  FOR  DEED.                                                                   rcMU  NO.  I.                                                    «»mtoi(a«*«w*-o»,«te«fc 

Know  all  flen  bv  these  Presents,  n*  .,.i,_sifii»«4-82?...»  «woweEu_- 

• 

of  the         City           of      Chicago        county  of       Cook              and  stale  of,  .^Illinois      , 

am          held  and  firmly  bound  onto                  John    Dp  9 

«f«be       City       _    o,    Tusoola     _   coamyof    Douglas         a^  St4Je  ^Illinois    _ 

•«  the  pemi  MO.  of.      _          One  Thousand  (|1000.00)-  •                               Doiun. 

)o  be  paid  unto  the  said                         .              John    DO6,     his* 

bind         OiyseZl,    my     _                beits,  executors  and  adminislxators  jointly  and  severally,  firmly  by  these  Pmerrts. 

Sealed  »>*       my       seal       .  and  dated  the   „     9th        .         day  of..    Septen)beii_>i.  R,  MK>    9       - 

THE  CONDITION  OF  THE  ABOVE  OBLIGATION  IS  SUCH,  Thai.  Whereas,  «*  *bove 

bounder,                 Richard  RoOj 

ha    Sthis  day  sold  to  the  said        ,                              John    DO9      h.i8 

beirsand  assigns^for  the  sum  oi                  ~—  Five    Hundred   ——  ~                                                                         fjona«r  • 

Lot  Number  Four  (4)^   in  Blook  Number  Fifteen  (15)^ 

of  Wamsley  &  Cannon's  Addition  to  the  Town   (now  City)  of 

Tuscola,    Illinois, 

•»bichsumof                               FiTO    Hundred  DoUarj  is  to  be  paid 

in  the  manner  following 

One  Hundred  Dollars   (|100.00)   September  9th^  19107   and 

One  Hundred  Dollars   ($100.00)  annually  thereafter,?*** 

posilims  that  may  be  legally  levied  or  imposed  upo»  said  land  subsequent  to        ...      January    1st  ,           A    n  T* 

thesaid                             fUchard  Hoe  his 

tors  and  assigns  to  execute  a  good  and  sufficent  deed  of  conveyance,  i.i  fee  simple,  free  from  all  incumbrance,  with  full  covenants 
of  warranty  for  the  above  described  premises. 
NOW,  H  the  said                             John    D09 

kept  and  performed,  then  this  obligation  to  be  void;  otherwise,  to  remain  in  full  force  and  virtue.    It  is  expressly  understood  and 
agreed  by  and  between  the  parties  hereto,  that  time  is  of  the  essence  of  this  contract*  and  that  in  the  event  of  the  non-payment  of 
>aid  sum  of  money,  or  any  part  thereof,  or  the  interest  thereon,at  the  time  or  times  herein,  named  for  iu  payment,  that  then  the 
said                                   RiChard    Roe                                                                                     s}aU  hj  absolutely  discharged 

SEALED  AS»  DELIVERED  IS  THE  FBESEXCE  OP     ^                 vy^«         fl           fi^'r*           / 

'{j^Q  ,-sJ-^^s    *s  rZi£S34£^Q^0ris*'               ^                                                                                                  ^-Ci**J 

>v  ,f*  A-*^       7      '                                                                                             1§eS?. 

//LSC>^  <**^P~^IM«'               i                                              ~  ^-CY=-! 

357 


HANTtf  D£EO-5«in<n>r> 


TCT  the    State  of  Illinois. 


Journal  frfeH«T  Ca.  TiutU*.  ItUMi 


_•_    John  Doe  ana  Mary  Doe  hie  wife, 


of       the    City      of       Part*  County  of 

Edgar         and  Slate  of       Illinois,  for  and  in  consideration  of 

the  sum  of  —Eight  Thousand  Two  Hundred  -   ($8300.00)~—  •—•        DOLLARS 

n  hand  paid,  CoiVtf       and  UMrratf       to 

William  Brown. 

of  the    City        of  Charleston,  County  of       Coles, 

State  of    Illinois,  the  following  described  Real  Estate,  to-wits 


The  North  East  Quarter  of  the  South  West  Quarter  of 
Section  Number  Nina  (9),   in  Township  Kuaber  Fifteen 
(15)  North,   Range  Number  Eight   (8),  East  of  the 
Third  Principal  Meridian,     together  with  the  right  of 
ingress  and  egress  over^  across  and  upon  the. .Worth 
Tiro  (3)   rods  of  the. Worth  West  Quarter  of  the  South 
Weat  Quarter  of  aaid  Section  Nine  (9), 


ixxat  County  of  Douglas 


M 
hereby  releasing  and  waiving 


all  rights  under  and  by  virtue  of  (ho  Homestead  Exemption  laws  of  the  State  of  Illinois. 
The  grantors  herein  reserve  unto  thenselvee  the  rents,  profits  and 
control  of  said  premises  aTjove  described,  during  their  lifetime,  o*  th« 
lifetime  «f  the  survivor  of  then. 


Dated  this     goth 


A.  D.  I91..0 


.(Seal) 


,<Seal) 
.(Seal) 

JSeal) 


358 


<HTIT  CLAIM  DEED-STATUTORY. 


State  of  Illinole 


Cbe  Grantor. 


Doe  and  Mary  Doe  hi  a  ***>, 


of 


...Edgar,, jind  Stale  of..-..  j.^..*.°9Ag/. „ ,/OT-  a>w?  is  consideration  of 

(he  sum  of ~J*gfrt...Thou8.md..J!*o..R 

in  hand  paid,  CONVEY      aaf  QUIT  CLAIM      to -.gichard  .Poe_and.  .tan 


- af/te City.. <>/•.... Tuacola, 

State  of. ..^^^^.i... ..all  interest  in  tJufolloaang  described  Seal  Estate,  to-tsit: 

....     Tha_South..Eagt  Jfrjart.er ..of ^,.the  South ...^eat  guaJtet  of 

. Section ...Nuabar ..One ^....(Ijj  JpTOBhipHumber  Sixteen   (16)_ 

gb,e.r_jgeYen ...(.7}-n>  Eagt.c>.f.. .the  Third 
Jie_ridian,_aleo 


_  Lot  Number  One   (1),  In 

_glocfc_ JftMg>e_r_Seyen  (7),   of  Goehring'B  SubdiviBion  of 


..^.in  the  Slate  ot Pllntjla., hereby  releasing  ipd  valuing 


ia  the  County  of  .. 


rights  under  and  by  virtue  of  the  Homestead  Exemption  laws  of  Che  State  of 

Deed  made  to  correct  the  description  in  a  deed  from  the  said 
grantors  dated  October  10th,  1903,  and  of  record  in  Voliiss  Ko.24, 
at  Page  #85,  of  the  Deed  Records  of  said  Douglas  County. 


DATED  a. 


359 


For  tie    State  of  Missouri. 

' 

VARRANTY  DEED,  whb  SuMtorr  Acknovlttlgmciib.      FORM  NO.  B«o.                                     TrriecU**  Lx»>  •"•»*  »  .  c«K-.r> 

THIS  INDENTURE.  Made  on  Ou    -30th      ._      ..AK/O/  .-September  _j.  D.  one 

/*^«^»iM*,,^A_,l.T«n.  „_...  .             Jn,  and  between      John  Doe  and  Mary  Doe 

bis  wife, 

of  th,  c"y  af..  .  -  Part  a....  _     .  o^v  of   Edgar  ^d  state  of-  Illinp.  ie  

part  iofythefrstjnrt.and   „  Will  lam   Brown             _...„  

ofthe  City.  ^..Charleston.  ....  covntyof  .-    C&lee  .  inthe  state  of  ..  Illinois 

—  __.  —  —  __—.  nnrt  *a^i/  the  second  part. 
WITJfESSETH,  Thatthe  said  parties.    «f  the  first  part,  in  consideration  of  the  sumnf 

,  —Eight  Thousand  Two  Hundred—   ($8300.00)-  ~--DOLL.thS. 

to  .-  t  hen  naid  tm  the  said  part,  y    ofthe  second  part,  the  receipt  ofichich  is  hereby  acknowledged. 

do,  ty  these  prrstnts,  GJldJfT,  BdROjtlJfJJfD  SELL.   COJfTEr  JXT)  CONFIRM,  unto  the  said 
part  y^^ofthe  secortd-part  —  hl&..—  .  heirs  and  assigns,  the  following  described  lots,  Iracjs  or  parcels 
of  land.  Imnf.  beinf  and  situate  inthe  Coantu  of  Kodaway  ,  and  State  of.  Missouri. 

The  Sorth  East  Quarter  of  the  South  West  Quarter  of 

Section  Number  Hine   (9),Town8hip  Number  Six  (6),  North 

Range  Number  Ten  (10),  West  of  the  Fifth  Principal  Meridian,___ 

^^^ 

.^^ 

^^ 

^/^ 

^s' 

^^ 

./^ 

sS^ 

.s^ 

.s' 

./^ 

./^                         , 

TO  HA  YEAJTD  TO  BOLD  the  premises  aforesaid,  with  all  and  singular  the  rights,  privileges,  appur- 
tenanauandimmunUiestheretobelonging,  orinanyicise  appertaining,  unto  the  said  part.  3...  of  the 
vcovtpart.andunto  hia...^,heirs  ,^  assign,  former:  the  ^id^.9^^^.  ^^  «"?   Doe 

hifl  ml'fa 

hereby  covenanting  that  -  .they   are  ..lawfully  seized  of  an  indefeasible  estate  in  fee  in  the  premise* 
herein  conveyed;  that.  —thay/jftxxi  right  to  convey  the  same;  that  the  said  premises  a  re  free  and  clear 

theyj^yj  Warrant  and  J)efend  the  title  to  the  said  premises  unto  the  said  partly....  ofthe  second 

part,  and  unto  J^+fJifin  and  assigns  forever  against  tlie  lawful  claims  and,  demands  of  all  persons 
whomsoever. 
7.V  WZTJTE3S  WHEREOF,  the  said,  part  ie»of  the  first  part  ha-JTS  —  hereunto  settbelXjumd*-. 

and  sealAhe  day  and  year  first  above  written. 

jL^*                                                           /7. 

^**  ~  ^~'  "^^t><~J'e>tf  "  —  *                   /HxtAA<,  jS  (>-o^              ^^^^ 

A  ^^^Z                          A 

*—£*- 

360 


POWER  OF  ATTORNEY.Hoorn.lIVinur,  Co..  Print,  T 

^»*44i44444444«*4444*44444444444*4444444 

;    Know  All  Men  by  These  Presents,  That .J.,.-Ri.-ohard  Ro«- 1 


of  the  ....City  ..........  .................  of.  .....  ....Omaha...  .............  County  of  .....  ...BgUglftS.,  ..........  _...inthe 

Stale  of  .........  _____  Jlaforaflka.  .......  .hayfl  ......  JUC    made,  constituted,  »nd  appointed.  »nd  BY  THESE  PRESENTS        | 


ake,  constitute,  and  appoint  ..........  _  .......  ...•£?.**?...  P.9.* 


>  of  the  ........  ...City......  ............  oi  .....  Indiflfljap.o.Ileu-  ...........  county  of  ......  ..Marion  ......  ........  _  ..... 

;  andStateof.  __  .....  ..Indians,,.  ............  .my....  true  and  lawful  ATTO«NEY    tor....B<>....  ...................  _....«nd  in        i 

S  «  ......  ____  .....  ....MY...  .....  _  ......  name    place,  and  stead  to  ......  .bargain...  fiel.l.  and  ...convey  ............. 

$  .  the..  North.  Half  .of  ...8.ection..Number.J«in..(10)^-.ToTO8h  ...... 


5  ...Jf-9.?...3ugh-.P.?-l<?.9...aMd..o"...^^^^  ; 

5  ...art.d  ..dol.iy.er.  t?  any  purchaser  thereof  a^  good  and  sufficient  deed 

therefor,  with  covenants  of  General  Warranty;  to  receive  all  moneys 

$  _.  therefor,  and  to  accept  any  mortgage  in  my  name  for  any  unpaid  purchaeU 

J| 

*    ....priggj..  and,  to..  .release  the   same,,  when.  .paid.!  ...........................................  _  ............    £ 


*  giving  and  granting  nnto....J9fen.  .PP.a*  ..??..... said  ATTORNEY       full  power  and  authority  to  do  and 

9  perform  all  and  every  act  and  thing  whatsoever,  requisite  and  necessary  to  be  done  in  and  about  the  premises,  as  fully,  to  ill     5 

£  intents  and  purposes,  as .I,.rny3elf    migbtor  could  do  if  personally  present  at  the  doing  thereof,  with 

5  full  power  of  substitntion  and  revocation,  hereby  ratifying  and  confirming  all  that  ....nty.... __._.._said  ATTOIXEV 

JjJ  or.. ~.T-f. substitute  shall  lawfully  do  or  cause  to  be  done  by  virtue  hereof. 

m  IN  TESTIMONY  WHEREOF,. _ I have  hereunto  set ....Eg... hibd    and  seal 

|  this ....?.9ffi.... dayot 

I 

£  Signed.  Scalad  and  Deli 

I 


9_ 


*    State  of .Itebrag 

I   County  of ...D.°.U.P.1.^°.. ..    J          1^ O.W..Een9.pn,a..NQtary..Publi.o.     1 


t 


in  and  for,  and  -residing  id  said  County,  in  the  State  aforesaid,  Do  HEREBY  CsiTirY,  that      ; 

Richard  Roe. 

f  ___  «^..,^^..j.«  «....  ......  ~  ..........  personally  koowa  to  me  to-.    ' 

be  the  same  person  whose  name  ___     J  ^      subscribed  (o  the  foregoing  Instrument,  appeared      ; 
before  me  this  day  in  person,  and   acknowledged  that    be    signed,  sealed,  and  delivered  tie 
said  Instrument  as_...hi8._  free  and  voluntary  act,  for  the  uses  and  purposes  therein  set  fortn. 

GIVEN  Under  my  hand  and  ..............  ...Notarial-  .......  .........  ---------  seal,  this         | 

.............  ....aOth..  ______  day  of  ......  ....May,..  ..............  .A.  V.O)    1510 


'Not&ry'"Pu'b'iioV 


361 


•  In  The  Journal  Prliutnr  Co..  Ttacala.  III. 


This  Indenture,     Made  and  entered  into  this 20th 

day  ftf     September  ,Qia^w^  John  Doa 

of  the  first  part,  and.—-      _Richard  Ro.e 


WITNESSETH,  That  the  party  of  the  first  part,  for  and  in  consideration  of  the  covenants  and  agreements  herein- 
after^mentioned,  ;to  be  kept  and  performed  by  the  party  of  the  second  part,  has,  by  these  presents,  demised  and 
leased  to  (he  party  of  the  second  part  the  following  described  land,  to-wit: 

The  Worth  East  Quarter  of  Section  Number  Twenty  (30) >      

...  ..  ..Townehip  Number  Sixteen   (16)   Worth,   Range  Kurcber  Ten   (10) j   East  of 

.the  Third  Principal  Meridian. 


in  the  county  i 


and  state  of         Illinois         and  containing  about     160 acres. 


_day  of 


TO  HAVE  AND  TO  HOLD  THE  SAME  to  the  party  of  the  second  part  from  the  first 

March         ^  D.  1913,  to  the          First          day  of         March  A.  D.  19**.    And  the  party 

of  the  second  part,  in  consideration  of  the  leasing  of  the  premises  as  above  set  forth,  covenants  and  agrees  with  the 

party  of  the  first  part  to  pay  the  party  of  the  first  part  at_    ,  Tuecola.    IllinoiB. 

as  rent  for  same,  in  the  manner  following,  that  is  to  say: 


One  Half  of  all  grain  raised  on  said  premises,  and  Seven  Dollars 
($7.00)  per  acre  for  all  pasture,  meadow,  or  other  lota  not  in 
cultivation. 


AND  the  . 
term  of  thii 

evftab.e  accident,  and  ordinary  wear  excepted. 
And  it  is  further  expressly  understood  and  agreed  between  the  parties  hereto,  as  follows: 


The  parly  of  the  • 


e  of    tbeioilnod  seuson  will  permit;    mid  lurlher  to  thesn 


rf.    Tuc  ijfirtj  of   tbe  second  part  shull  preserve  and  keep  the  fruit 

p  or  otherwise.  And  furilier  to  k«-ep  mild  premises  free  iron! 
h  and  burQ*,uucl  shall  nl»>  k'-fp  ;iii  BvMMiy  OM«fc>M  auU  drains 
«u  it  ml  oimiitrd  out  during  tn«  llfti  of  tills  le»»e. 

i.    Tht»  party  of  the  aecond  part  aha  1  keep  snld  premises,  including 

iindlord  altall  furnlsb  HI.  .    .  .ffU  A  flLQC.Ik -.atutlou  fcUcu 

•rlnl  iw  ht  or  bis  spent  may  consider  needful  to   repair  ftnld  prein- 

>n  or  persons  before  the  pitynient  of  **M  rmt.  or  If  ilie  party  uf  the 
:itl  pmt  sboll  sell  or  wtteiupt  lo  sell  «md  amln  or  produce  or  nny 
inereof.or  If  tbeanmeor  any  pwrt  i  hereof  snnll  be  *.  li.lint-d  or  nt- 
ed  or  levied  upon  by  eiec.llon,  or  clnlnied  by  iin.v  ntlicr  person  or 
>us  upon  any  pretense  wtiimo*  vrr.  li-  t-M  .-  <••.-.  \<\  • .  ni  -imll  bf»  lully 

Inniiediiuely  become  due  and  ptiyubleand  tbe  sn.u  uiirty  of  tbe 

Party   of   the    aeeonfl  i^artv   in 
also   is   to 


legal  representative,  ihnll  hrirelhe  rlsht  to  enter  Inio 

mull  It  S!ian'lx'  nt.  and  tlien  to  harvester  gather  and  wit  the.  sAmo  ur 
uny  part  thereolal  private  or  public  lule.undto  apply  Hie  proceeds 
thereof  to  the  puy  -•  •  ••  -  -  - 


ills  leus«.  u 
6th.   Thepnrty 


e  payu 


t  of  said  rent  hereby  r 


•ty  of  tbe  first  part  reierres  tbe  privilege  of  plowing  tue 

Hie  ^niln  ^ruwn  tber*>on;  nad  Itmher  tUni  the  ixirt.v  oftne  lint  pnrt  or 
lit*  legal  reprpunilut'.ve  nniy  oiilt-r  upon   wild  premises  lor  *b.«  purpwe 


7th.    If  saM  pnrty  of  tbe  second  part  sliAli  fain 
-  -•<!  or  bhull    full  10  keep  Mny  ol 
shnll  a»slgn  this  U>utu.  or  &b» 


sft.d  pr*m- 
inu  lu  (Mi 
w.ld  prein- 
>f  ihe  pnrty 


U(trc''fl  rn   -itsi 

lues  or  any  pnri  tbervof,  thei 

O(tb«  first  pttrt.  be  uull    an-J    void,  ami   tbu    party    of    t 
111*  Irx"  I  rifpresv.itHllve.  khHll  have  tbu  right  to  tttke  poi 
prvttilsc>,  u>lii)f  i-u--b  iorce  MS  may    b«  necessary  wlili  or  without  ,jio- 
crtw  ol  IIIM  ;  and  nil  dunm^t;  growing  out  of  A  liillure    to    perlorai  may 
of  the  covennnts  of  ml*  leuse  itbull  uc«adeU  lo  ana   become   R  part   of 
t  ii«  rent,  recovernble  as  rent. 
8th.    Tl.e  party  of  the  second  pan  hereby  mnlves  i»nt»  rellnqoikhci  all 


the   party  of  the   first    part  tuli 

power.authonty  and  right  to  take  anil  seue  any  personal  propeity, 
whether  exempt  by  law  ur  not,  and  sell  tlie  smne  or  any  part  thereof 
In  utteractlon  of  said  rent  hereby  agreed  lo  be  puld. 

9th.  The  party  of  the^  second  p-irt  lurthej-  ngrees(to  pny^nnd  discharge 


tbe  party  i 


.,11,1 


tpart. 


sow  clover  aeed  furnished  by  riret  party 


IN  WITNESS  WHEREOF  We  have  hereunto  set  our  hands  and  seals  the  day  and  year  first  above  written' 
Witness  for  party  of  first  part. 


Witness  for  party  of  second  part. 


.  ISeat) 
.iSeal] 


362 


Dead  of  Trust. 


a     John  Doe  and  Mary  Doe  his  wife, 

of       the    City       of     Tuaoola,         County  of 


Douglas,    and  Slate  of     Illinois, 


the  sum  of       ---  One  ---    ($1.00) 
in  hand  paid,  Conoev       and  Warrant       to 


for  and  in  consideration  of 
DOLLARS 


Richard  Roe,  trustee, 


of  the      City       of       Decatur,  County  of         Maoon, 

State  of      Illinois,  tne  following  described  Real  Estate,  to-wit: 


Lot  Number  Five   (5),   in  Block  Number  Ten  (10),   of  the 
Original  Town   (now  City)   of  Tusoola, 


situated  in  the  oof 

in  the  State  of  Illinois  hereby  releasing  and  waiving 

all  rights  tinder  and  by  virtue  of  the  Homestead  Exemption  laws  of  the  State  of  Illinois. 
The  above  premiaes  are  conveyed  upon  the  trust  to  receive  the  rents, 
laaues  and  profits  during  the  lifetime  of  William  R.Doe,eon  of  the  aald 
grantors, and  to  pay  the  same  to  him  aa  collected, and  at  His  death  to  con- 
vey the  same  in  fee  to  Mary  I. Doe, her  heirs  or  assigns. 

Dated  this       aoth ...        day  of      May  A.  D.  191  3 

(Seal) 

.(Seal) 

(Seal) 

_____(Seal> 


^TLJ 


363 


Real  Eitete  MortgsSe  N'ole.    Illinois  Form. 


$  5QO..OO „ 


TuB,9Q.l.»ji,Il.l.in.Qi,e.., June  let, 19..1.P.. 


'?our..TeaJ!». after  date,  for  value  received, *e. promise  to  pay  to 

the  order  of  the 

John  Hancock  Mutual  Life  Insurance  Company 

OF   BOSTOH.   MASSACHUSETTS 

at  its  office  in  Boston,  Massachusetts,  with  New  York  or  Chicago  Exchange,  the  sum  of 

"Fi79....Hu..n.d3reA.'7'. „ Dollars,  with  interest  at  the  rate  of 

flvo per  centum  per  annum,  payable SUBtt_annually,  as  per  coupons  attached  hereto. 

Any  principal  or  interest  not  paid  when  due  shall  bear  interest  at  the  rate  of  six  per 
centum  per  annum;  and  a  failure  to  pay  any  of  said  interest  when  due  shall  cause  the  whole 
note  to  become  due  and  collectible  at  once  at  the  option  of  the  holder  of  this  note.  It  is 
stipulated  that  in  any  "suit  brought  for  the  collection  of  this  note  a  reasonable  attorney's  fee 
shall  be  allowed  and  taxed  with  the  costs  in  such  suit. 


Post  Office 


(7 


100. QQ 
Juno  let 11 


s.....g.5!00.._...Tu.g.g{a.gt>Ill.....  June,  let,....  ........  1*1.0.  $...85,00  ......   Tusoola,  111  .   June  1st,  __________  ,,10 


o.  th.:  Jet.....^  ot June |9...M 

•  to  pay  to  the  order  of  John  Hancock  Mutual  Life  insurance  Company 
with    New  York    or    Chicago    Exchange. 


I   »:r   :    n   Boson.    Mamduaetta. 

..-.r*»Myr-fi.T.e..,- 


for^$50Q*.00-.I 

after  due.. 


..l9 


d.y  .1 


ft*"? 


..promise  to  pay  to  the  order  of  John  Hancock  Mutual  Life  Insurance  Company 

at    in)   office    in    Boston,    Massachusetts,    with    New   York    or    Chicago    Exchange, 

-Twenty-five  - DJWU,, - -* 

interest  to  thM  date  on  ...^P2£s«)te  for      -f50Q«QP~ DoHm, 

with  interest  at  six  per  centum  per  annum  after  due. 


Ne. 


t 35.00 TuBOola.Ill.   June  let,          )9lp 

iO.  «V.lgt....«l.y  of. ....  JWnjS^. I9...13. 


...prt'iTjUe  to  pay  to  the  order  of  Joha  Hancock  Mutual  Life  Insurance  Company 
oftcein    Bortoo,    MsMacKusctts,    with    New  York    or    Chkago    Ezcbaiue, 

-HenCy-^-e^ ^j^^...^^ 

...Dotun. 


$  35.00       Tusoola.Ill.   June  let,         ,9ip 

O»tlie....l.B't..J.yof....  Jung I9...11. 

*^...promise  to  pay  to  the  order  of  Johl  Hancock  Mutnal  Life  Insurance  Company 
at   its   ofSce   in    Boston.   Massachusetts,    with    New   York    or    Chicago    Exchange, 

rTw.enty-fiye- 

interest  to  that  date  on....P.n0...nole  for.. 


r  due. 


No. 1_ 


A  coupon  note  is  an  ordinary  promissory  note  with  a  small  note  attached  for 
each  interest  period.  The  attached  notes  are  called  coupons  and  are  used  for  con- 
venience in  the  collection  of  the  interest. 

The  note  here  shown  is  secured  by  the  trust  deed  illustrated  on  the  opposite 
page.  Instead  of  a  trust  deed,  such  note  may  also  be  secured  by  a  mortgage,  as 
exhibited  on  the  next  succeeding  page.  The  mortgage  may  be  sold  and  assigned 
and  if  this  is  done  the  assignee  is  the  proper  party  to  release  the  mortgage  when  paid. 


364 


UnilBd States  |i iiii  of  America. 


CM$  indenture  aiitne$$eti),  tbatroe  grantor. 


John  Doa  and  Mary  Poo  his  wife, 


and  stat«  «f  Hebraeka 


and  in  eontideration  of  the  turn  of.  .........  _________  —Five   Hundred  - 

in  hand  paid,  ewiMV—  aid  Ularrul   Jo  ____  .  ___  Richard  Roo, 

party  of  the  second  part,  the  following  dettribed  Real  Satate,  to-wit 


The  North  Half  of  the  South  fleet  Quarter  of  Section 
Number  Twenty-  four   (34).   Town  eh  ip  Number  Sixteen   (16) 
North  Range  Mumber  Eight    (8)  .   EaaT  of  the  Third 
Principal  Meridian, 


•Httated  ID  the  County  of .. 
under  add  by  virtue  of  the 
after  aoj  default  In  payme 
following  purposes: 


toh  of  any  of  Ki 

John  Doe 


In  the  StJite 
nants  or  agrvemei 


...  Justly  Indebted  upon  .. 


...Promissory  Koto  ..„,  bearing  « 


a  *ite  herewith,  payable  to  the  order  of 


the  John  Hancock  Mutual  Life  Insurance  Company. of  Boaton. 
MaflSaohUBeUe .   for  the  principal  sun  of  Five  Hundred  Dollars 

(S500.00)    due  June  let.    191'4.   with  interest  theroon  at 

five  per  cent  per  annum  payable  annually,   evidenced  by  four 
oouoon  notee  attached  for  the   aura  of  Twenty-five  Dollars 

£35.00)    each,    and  dua   June   1st. 1911-1913-1913- j.9:4areepeotivelyj 
and  all    tearing  six  per  cent   interest  after  due. 


Rev,  If  default  be  made  In  the  payment  of  the  said 
toterett  thereon,  or  any  part  thereof,  at  the  time  and  lo  the  i 

In  such  cue  the  whole  of  said  principal  torn  and  In  tares  t,  secured  by  the  i 

upon,  at  the  option  of  the  legal  holder  or  holders  thereof,  become  1m  media 

holder  of  said  Promissory  Note  ....81  or  either  of  them.  It  shall  be  lawful  f. 

name  or  otherwise,  to  file  a  bill  or  bills  In  any  court  baring  Jurlsdlctloi 

belrs,  executors,  administrators  and  aaslrna,  to  obtain  a  decree  I 

premises  for  the  purposes  herein  specified,  by  said  party  of  tlie  sec 

wise,  under  order  of  court  and  oat  of  the  proceeds  of  any  such  sal 

and  conveyance.  Including  the  reasonable  fees  tuv!  comnilwloaa  of  said  party  of  ;ne 

execute  this  trust  and ,..^..^31     nty*-TlVe—  Dollars 

expenses  of  this  trui t 


tbe  legt  I  bolder  thereof,  an 

party  of  the  first  part 

purehati 


— OBfe.^^. .Promissory  Nota  ...... ,  or  any  part  thereof,  or  tbe 

oner  above  specified  for  the  payment  thereof,  or  In  case  of  waste,  or 

tee  application  of  tbe  legal 
e,  or  bis  succeseor  In  trust.1  this  own 
Id  party  of  the  first  oart  tag  IT 
yaaoe  of  the  whole  or  any  part  of  said 
*  or  MI  special  commissioner,  or  other- 
'  snch  salt,  all  costs  of  advertising,  tale 
nd  part,  or  person  wbo  may  be  appointed  to 

ite rest  thereon  at 


uote  ..fl  whether 
to  tbe  time  of  si 
lives  or  uslzos,  c 


and  payable  by  the  ten 

lale,  rendortng  the  overplus,  If  any,  ui 
lionable  request,  and  It  shall  not  be  tbe 


esald 


able  c 


ie  said  note  ..6..  and 
sentattves,  shall  re-i 
larges  therefor.  Ii 


nvey 


ruing  udder  this  Trust  Deed,  shall  b*  fully  paid,  th«  said  trustee  or  hit  st:ec«stor 
id  premises  tC;  the  graotorB....  or  t.njtj^3£helrs  or  BaWeis,jyion  rf-«e Ivfat.'ils 

inability  to  acroHaTtnifiteQ  ^tlcaarq:  ttoer 


f  the  death,  resign*! 

then  the  acting  sheriff  of  tbe  county  wherein  said  laud  Is  located  Is 
ith  like  power  and  authority,  as  Is  hereby  Tested  la  sat*  trustee.  It  Is  a<>r 
fees  Incurred  or  paid  by  satd  trustee  or  the  holder  or  holders  of  i&ld  not« 
defendant,  by  resions  of  being  a  party  to  Ihls  Trust  Deed,  or  a  holder  of  s 
ises,  and  may  be  Included  In  any  decree  ordering  the  gala  of  said  p 


successor  lo  trust  herei 
pay  all  costs  and  attorn 
of  them  may  be  plaintiff 
shall  be  a  USD  on  said  p 
of  any  sale  thereof. 

Ottwss  The  hand  8  and  sealQ  ...of  said  (Tutor  0 


Richard  Roe  and  Mary  Ro»  hie.-wife, 


ofOu-SI&t... o/TveCOlft, in  the  County  of 


_5lortgage.-and  Warrant-^ -  foM.  PQ**, 


OKJ  Statt  of 
promiuorii 


..  ______  to  tecure  the  payment  of...,  ......  gM  ......... 

he^'aid  JDO  ft  ga6pr»,.  ......  ____  bearing  even  date  herewith 


note—,  executed  by  __  ^e 

payable  to  the  order  of._  .....  the   eald  John  Doe  ,     more  partioMlerly  deeoribad 

M  one  principal  note  for  the  sum  -of  One  Hundred  Dollars   (tlOO.OO> 
duj>_,Jun.e..SthJ...19141  with,  interest  at  eeyen  per  pent  per  annum  _  _____ 

frog  date  .until  jaid,    jayatile  at  the  .BarLk  of  Eragg-Hclm  &  Oo.»  ,._ 


the  following  deterited  Real  Ettatt.  to-wit: . 


The  South  Two  Hundred   (SOO)   feet .of  Blpolc  JBumb<»r_ 


(now  City)   of  Tugcola, 


tituated  i»  «V_Ci.ty_d/__TUBOOlat._.Ci>u.»<y  o/__  _  ^'T 


in  the  State  of  IlUnoit. 


hereby  retfitinf  and  waiving  all  rifhtt  under  ant',  by  virtue  of  the  Homestead  Exemption  Lawi  of 
the  State  of  lUinoU 


Dated  this- 


Jlay  of ...APril> 


*S 


(L*-r 


t    & 

366 


ASSIGNMENT    OF    MORTGAGE.-? 


Know  all  Men  by  These  Presents,  That-  .....  .JU..Joha...D.aeL» 


of  the  6rst  part,  in  consideration  of  the  sum  of. 


~"Tr 


Dollars,  lawful  money  of  the   United  States,  to  .......  P-9  ..........  in  hand  paid  by 

of  .the.City..pf.  .IndianaRQllaa..afld.8.tfttj>..ojr..  ..... 


Indiana, 


of  tho  second  part,  at  or  before  theensealing  and  delivery  of  these  presents,  the  receipt  whereof  is  hereby  ackocwl 
edge,  h»V6  granted,  bargained,  sold,  assigned,  transferred  and  set  over,  and  by  rbese  presents  do        grant,  bar- 

gain, seU,  assign,  transfer  and  set  over  unto  the  said   party     of   the  second   put  •  certain  INDENTURE  OF 
MORTGAGE,  bearing  date  the.  .....  Fifth  ........  .....  .Jay  of   ....AP.r.t.l  ....  ....................  A.  D..  one  thou- 

sand .  Nine  .  flupd.r.$.d  .  Fcurt  eaa,.  .....................................  made  by  ....................................... 

.  ......  Richard  Roa  and  ,.Ma.y.y...Roe..hie 


aud  all  .........  ...BT.  ...................  Tight,  title  and  interest  to  the  premises  tbcrcl*  described,  as  follows,  town  — 


.Tbg...So.uth. 


which  said  mortgage  is  recorded  in  the  Recorder's  office  of  the  County  of 

in  the  State  oC...I.Uin0.1tt.. in  Book  No .?.?. of  Mortgages,  at  page .4.56.... 

together  with  the  notes  therein  described  and  the  money  doe  and  to  grow  due  thereon,  with  the  interest   from 

date  of  said  instrument. 


And  I  .do  hereby  authorize  and  empower  said  party  of  the  second  pan  to  collect  the  said  money  and  interest, 
and  in  case  of  payment,  to  release,  cancel  and  discharge  the  same  as  fully  as- __roight  or  could  do  if  these  presents 
were  not  made. 

AND — .1— do  for ...HS-acl-fj-Dy  •••• heirs,  executors  and  administrators  covenant  with 

the  said  second  party  and  the  heirs,  executors,  administrators  and  assigns  of  the  said  second  party  that  there  is  now 

actually  owing  on  the  said  Mortgage "M*..^&™&.--..1&9°!.W)."-- DolUrs 

principal,  and . " ^^•"•*^*^*«»«— — •-— — Dollars  interest,  to datiB _._ 


1 and  the  undersigned  has  good  and  legal  right  to  assign  the  same. 

IN  WITNESS  WHEREOF,__i-bave  hereunto  set JBJ  hand     and  seal    the        Tenth 


day  of.. 


WITNESSES: 


A.  D..  io\4 


uM 


a 


.{SKA1.J 

.[HAL.] 


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WILL. 

I,  John  Doe,  of  the  County  of  Douglas  and  State  of  Illinois, 
being  of  sound  and  disposing  mind  and  memory,  do  make, publish  and 
declare  this  to  be  my  last  will  and  testament,  hereby  revoking  all 
former  wills  by  me  at  any  time  heretofore  made. 

First,  I  direct  that  all  my  just  debts  and  funeral  expenses 
shall,  by  my  executors  hereinafter  named,  be  paid  out  of  my 
estate  as  soon  after  my  decease  as  shall  by  them  be  found 
convenient. 

Second,  I  give,  devise  and  bequeath  to  my  beloved  wife,  Mary  Doe, 
all  my  personal  property  whatsoever.   I  also  give  to  her  the  use, 
rente  and  profits  of  all  my  real  estate  wherever  situated,  to  have 
and  to  hold  the  same  to  her  for  and  during  the  term  of  her  natural 
life. 

Third,  I  give  and  bequeath  to  my  daughter,  Maggie  Doe,  the 
East  Half  of  the  North  East  Quarter  of  Section  Ten  (10), 
Township  Sixteen  (16)  North,  Range  Six  (6),  East  of  the  Third 
Principal  Meridian,  in  fee  to  her  and  her  heirs,  subject  to  the 
life  estate  of  my  said  wife,  Mary  Doe. 

Fourth,  all  the  rest,  residue  and  remainder  of  my  said  estate 
I  give,  devise  and  bequeath  to  my  son,  William  Doe,  to  him  and 
his  heire,  subject  to  the  life  estate  aforesaid,  of  the  said 
Mary  Doe. 

Fifth,  I  nominate  and  appoint  ray  son,  William  Doe,  to  be  the 
executor  of  this  ray  last  will  and  testament,  and  direct  that  he 
be  not  required  to  give  bond  as  such  executor. 

In  Witness  whereof,  I  have  hereunto  subscribed  my  name  and 
affixed  my  seal  this  3d  day  of  June,  A.D.  1910. 

(Seal) 

Signed,   sealed,  published  and  declared  by  the  said 
John  Doe  as  and  for  his  last  will  and  testament,   in  the  presence 
of  us  who  at  his  request  and  in  his  presence  and  in  the  presence 
of  each  other  have  subscribed  our  names  as  witnesses  thereto. 

residing  at  Tuscola,Ill. 


^         residing  at  Tuscola,Ill. 

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Ch at tel  Mortgage. 


Know  All  Men  by  These  Presents: 

That....    .........John.  Do.e. 


of  the  Town  of  ......  F.^TOftP.  .....  ............  in  the  Oonnty  of.  ...  .PPU8*-a.*  .  ...............  ID  consideration  of  the  sum 

ot.  ...T^T....  TWO..  Hundred.  .Flfty-r.-r.  .(&3SO..OQ)-r.r-.-;r.r.  ..................  DOLLARS  to  ...B*.  ........ 

paid  by  .  .  .  .  Ri.9.frfl£fl  .  ?P*.  .................  of  the  County  of  DoaglMBOd  State  of  niinoii,  the  receipt  whereof  to  hereby  ac- 

knowledged, does  hereby  GRANT,  SELL,  CONVEY  and  CONFIRM  into  the  said  .......  RlOfaald  BOB  .......  and  to  hi* 

heirs,  executors,  administrators  and  assigns  forever  the  following  Goods  and  Chatties,  to-wit:  .,  ........  .--  .  .....  .  —  .  ....... 


.....  One..  Bay.HQr.8g.,..  four.  .yeaxs.  old.  sane..  yBobyvaluo.  4^5..  00.... 

_^e  Grey  Hprse,   eight  yeare  old  name   "Toe",  value  $100.00 

.  One  .  Parry  .  Surrey  ,uaed  two  .  ye  are  ,  .  .yalua  }5Q..QO.  ......  .............. 

One  ."Black-  Hawlc.1  .  Corn.  .plantar.  ,.  .  yalue  .  >35.  OQ..  .  . 

oine    "Hocaier''.  .Wheat.  P.rii'j,  .yai.ua,  >3p.QO... 


Fo  rt  y   (40 )  ae  re  e  growing  co  TO,  .'subject. .  to  ..Landlord'.?,  .lien,.,  on , 

.the. .South. East. Quarter. .of.  the  South.. West  QuarteSc  «f  .Section. Ten. .(10) 

TowneMp  Fpurt^^ 

Principal  Meridian, 


TO  HAVE  AMD  TO  HOLD  all  and  singular  the  said  Goods  and  Chattels  onto  the  said  Mortgagee 

executors,  administrators  and  assigns,  to  them  and  their  sqle  use  forever.    And  the  said  Mortgagor  herei                             . 
f  orh  j  6.  heirs,  executors  and  administrators,  do9£-  hereby  covenant  to  and  with  the  said  Mortgagee,  his  heirs,  executory,  adminis- 
trators and  assigns,  that  said  Mortgagor  .JjS^. lawfully  possessed  of  the  said  Goods  and  Chattels.  asof...fl*.9 dwn 

property;  that  the  same  are  free  from  all  uicumbrances,  that — he will  and ...  hi  fl ...  executors  and   administrators 

shall  warrant  and  defend  the  same  to  him  the  said  Morgagee,  his  heirs,  executors,  administrators  and  assigns,  against  the  lawful 
claims  and  demands  of  all  persons. 

PROVIDED  NEVERTHELESS,    That  if  the  said  Mortgagor hie,  .executors  or  administrators  shall  well  and  truly 

pay  unto  the  said  Mortgagee,  his  heirs,  executors,  administrators  or  assigns  one  certain  promissory  note  of  even  date  herewith,  for 

the  principal  sum  of ~ T.*°. .  fo"dr(3d .  Fi  f ty-— ~r~-.— .~.~— "" DOLLARS 

due  and  payable .fojgU.gt .  .20th,  ,. 3-910  ,,. with  7  per  cent  interest  from  date 

signed  bv... the. .said.  Jphr,..0.oe and  payable  to  the  order  of Richard.  Roe, 

And  if  not  paid  at  maturity,  or  when  the  same  becomes  due  by  the  exercise  of  any  of  the  options  contained  in  the  chattel 
mortgage  securing  said  note,  and  the  said  Note  be  "placed  after  maturity,  or  after  it  becomes due  as  aforesaid,  in  the  handa  of  an 
attorney  for  collection  or  foreclosure,  the  payer  promises  to  pay  the  additional  sum  nf .  ."".T7?6nty.r  X  l.y^TTT .  .DOLLARS, 
as  attorney  fee,  said  fee,  in  case  of  salt,  to  be  a  part  of  the  judgment;  or  in  case  of  foreclosure,  to  be  a  part  of  the  amoact*  due 
and  secured  by  said  mortgage*  which  note  states  on  its  face  that  it  is  secured  by  chattel  mortgage  of  even  date  herewith: 

AND  PROVIDED  ALSO,    That  it  shall  be  lawful  for  the  said  Mortgagor. . .  .&  £.9.  executors  and  administrators  to 
ossession  of  said  GOODS  and  CHATTELS,  and  at.  Jh.JB.own  expense  to  heep  and  use  the  same  until.  ^£ or  ... 

itors  or  administrators  shall  make  default  in  the  payment  of  the  said  sumof  mon^y  above  specified,  either  in  principal  or  interest 

,  on  the  day  or  days  respectively  on  which  the  Mice  shall  become  doe  and  p&yable,  or  if  the  ^iortgagee.  hts  executors,    administrator!  or  agaiffu  shall 

id  in  any  or  either  of  the  aforesaid  eaaca.  all  of  aaU  Note  and  sum  of  money,  Ixn  principal  aid  interest,  liull,  at  the  Option  of  ,t£«  aakl  Mortjnwee,   bfc 
xeru'iors.  admir.ia trators  or  aesiffna,  withou .  notice  of  SA,I  optkm  to  anrone,  become  at  once  dro  and  paysble,  and  the  aaid  Mortamgee,    hU  heir*.  «xec«. 

Chstteb  nay  t-e  or  be  supposed  to  be.  and  search  for  the  same,  and  if  found  to  take  pouMBion  of,  and  remove  and  e*n  and  diapoae  of  toe  said  property,  or  any 
&rt  thereof,  at  public  auction,  to  the  highest  bidder,  after  Brlvin*-  fire  day*'  notice  of  the  tiro*,  place  and  term*  of  aale.  together  wHh  •  d«criptwn  of  the 
_:erty  to  be  ooW.  by  notices  posted  up  in  threw  public  places  in  'the  vicinity  of  such  sale,  or  at  private  nlewtth  or  without  uotice,  for  cash  or  on  credit,  u 
e  said  Mortgagee,  hi*  heira,execuUm,  administrators  or  asoiarna.  agent*  or  >ttorney4or  any  of  them,  may  elect  and  oat  of  the  money  ami  jg  from  snch  Bale 
c  retain  all  coete  and  charge*  for  pnrvum?,  «earchin£  for.  tak.ng-,  remwing.  keeping,  storing,  advertieing'  and  telling  such  Good*  and  Cbittel\  and  the  attor- 

ntosaid  Kor*gagor.-.-.or...  jl*  8— .legal  repreagntatlvea 

THE  EXHIBITION  of  tins  mortgage  sbal!  be  sufficient  proof  that  any  pen-on  claiming-  to  act  for  the  Mortgagee „  his  '^eir*.  «tecato™.  adninlstraton 

r  assigns,  id  duly  made,  constituted  and  appointed  agent  or  attorney  to  do  whatever  is  above  authorized. 

Witness  the  hand. . .  .and  seal ...  -of  the  said  Mortgagor. . . .  this*. . . .  JSO.th.  .day  of...May..^_. in  the  year  of 

IUT  Lord  One  Thousand  Nine  Hnndred....  ?C.P _v 


.[SEAL] 
.  [SEAL] 

37T~ 


.... 


BU.  OF  9ACE.'- 


Know  til  men  by  tkse  Presents* 


of  the CJLty.^f...TtL.acoiftJL 

am*  £Y/z/«  ^.—^-Xl  1  inpl. a 
JKOT  of ^tr 


County  of ..DPS 

~partS. of  the  first  part,  for- sad  in  cousidfrtition  of  tht 


-.--  -~.I&Q>OQJT 


Dollars, 

lawful  money  of  the  United  States  of  America,  to — .... g.ft... in  hand  paid,  at  or  before  the  euseal- 

ing  and  delivery  of  these  Presents,  by. R.J-cMrd  .Roe, . . 


of  (he  second  part,  the  receipt  whereof  is  hereby  acknowledged,  ha  ve  grunted,  bargained,  sold  and  delivered, 

and,  by  these  Presents,  do      grant,  bargain,  sell,  and  deliver,  unto  the  said  part.-.'y. of  the  second 

part,  all  the  fonowing  GOODS,  CHATTELS,  and  ^PROPERTY,  to-trif:. 


CC  fi«*  Md  10  I)«M  the  said  gaols,  chattels,  and  property,  unto  the  said  part.  3.  ---------  of  the  second  part, 

......  _&JA~Jto'r<.  executors,  administrators,  and  assigns,  to  and  for  ___  Ar.S  ___  ^improper  use  andbehoof, 

forever. 

Jfad  tht  said  part.  .?....-  of  tht  first  part  do  eeyoucA  .......  -himself  ........  ______  tobe  the  true  and 

lawful  owner       of  the  said  goods,  chattels,  and  property,  and  hare  in.  ------  himself      ......  jun  power, 

good  right,  and  latfful  authority,  to  dispose  of  the  said  goods,  chattels,  and  property,  in  manner, 
as  aforesaid:       And  .he   dpea  ......  j&.  for.  —  .............  _hlms.eI.£^..hi,S  ........  ......  heirs,  executors, 

and  administrators,  covenant  and  agree  to  and  with  the  said  part-^j.  ...........  -  .......  of  the  second  part,  to 

(DUTM!  Ut  DrtOMI  the  said  goods,  chattels,  and  property,  to  the  saidpartT  .................  of  the  second  part, 

........  J1.?.?-  executors,  administrators,  and  assigns,  against  the  lawful  claims  and  demands  of  all  and  ev- 

ery person  and  persons  whomsoever. 
It  WiflK**  UllKTOf, 


A.... haoe  here  unto  set. „ 

day  of j 


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THE  PRIME  MERIDIANS. 

The  work  of  surveying  the  public  lands  is 
now  a  part  of  the  work  of  the  General  Land 
Office,  one  division  of  the  Department  of  the 
Interior,  and  is  under  the  control  of  the  Com- 
missioner of  the  General  Land  Office,  who  is 
subject  to  the  direction  of  the  President  of  the 
United  States.  Prior  to  March  3,  1849,  it  had 
been  a  part  of  the  duties  assigned  to  the  Secre- 
tary of  State,  next  to  the  Secretary  of  War  and 
then  to  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury.  When  a 
survey  is  begun  the  initial  point,  from  which 
the  survey  is  to  be  extended,  is  first  established. 
This  point  should  have  a  conspicuous  position 
such  as  the  mouth  of  a  river,  or  a  copper  bolt 
set  in  a  rock  ledge,  and  should  be  further  de- 
termined astronomically. 

Next  the  principal  meridian  is  run  and  no 
other  initial  point  shall  be  established  until  au- 
thorized in  writing  by  the  Commissioner  of  the 
General  Land  Office. 

For  the  survey  of  the  lands  in  the  United 
States  as  are  measured  by  the  township  plan 
there  have  been  established  twenty-four  princi- 
pal meridians,  each  with  its  own  base  line,  as 
follows : 

(381) 


382        LAND  SUKVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

The  first  principal  meridian  divides  Ohio  and 
Indiana,  having  for  its  base  line  the  Ohio  River ; 
this  meridian  being  coincident  with  84  degrees, 
51  minutes  longitude,  west  from  Greenwich,  and 
governs  the  surveys  of  the  public  lands  in  the 
State  of  Ohio. 

The  second  principal  meridian  is  coincident 
with  86  degrees,  28  minutes  west  from  Green- 
wich, and  starts  from  the  confluence  of  the  Lit- 
tle Blue  Eiver  with  the  Ohio  Eiver,  runs  north 
to  the  Michigan  state  line,  and  governs  the  sur- 
vey of  Indiana  and  the  eastern  part  of  Illinois. 

The  third  principal  meridian  starts  at  the 
mouth  of  the  Ohio  Eiver  and  extends  north- 
ward to  the  northern  boundary  of  Illinois.  It 
governs  the  survey  of  Illinois  east  of  this  me- 
ridian, except  those  projecting  west  of  the  sec- 
ond principal  meridian,  and  the  survey  on  west 
of  the  meridian  to  the  Illinois  Eiver.  It  is  co- 
incident with  89  degrees,  10  minutes  and  30  sec- 
onds west  of  Greenwich. 

The  fourth  principal  meridian  begins  in  the 
middle  of  the  channel  at  the  mouth  of  the  Illi- 
nois Eiver,  latitude  38  degrees,  58  minutes,  12 
seconds  north,  longitude  90  degrees,  29  minutes, 
56  seconds  west  of  Greenwich,  and  governs  the 
survey  of  Illinois  west  of  the  Illinois  Eiver  and 
west  of  the  third  principal  meridian  north  of 
the  river.  It  also  extends  north  through  Wis- 
consin and  northeastern  Minnesota,  governing 


THE  PRIME  MERIDIANS.  383 

all  the  surveys  in  Wisconsin  and  those  in  Min- 
nesota lying  east  of  the  Mississippi  River  and 
east  of  the  third  guide  meridian  west  of  the 
fifth  principal  meridian  north  of  said  river.  The 
lands  in  western  Canada  are  surveyed  from 
this  meridian  northward  and  the  national  bound- 
ary line  as  a  base  line. 

The  fifth  principal  meridian  starts  at  the 
mouth  of  the  Arkansas  River  and  with  its  base 
line  running  west  from  the  mouth  of  the  St. 
Francis  River  in  Arkansas,  governs  the  survey 
of  Arkansas,  Missouri,  Iowa,  Minnesota,  west 
of  the  Mississippi  River  and  third  guide  merid- 
ian north  of  said  river,  and  in  the  Dakotas  east 
of  the  Missouri  River.  It  is  coincident  with  90 
degrees,  58  minutes,  west  longitude. 

The  sixth  principal  meridian,  coincident  with 
97  degrees,  22  minutes,  west  longitude,  with 
principal  base  line  intersecting  it  on  the  for- 
tieth parallel,  extends  northward  to  the  Mis- 
souri River  and  south  to  37  degrees  north  lati- 
tude, controlling  the  surveys  of  Kansas,  Ne- 
braska and  the  Dakotas,  south  and  west  of  the 
Missouri  River,  Wyoming  and  Colorado,  except- 
ing the  Rio  Grande  Valley  in  Colorado,  which 
valley  is  governed  by  the  survey  from  the  New 
Mexico  meridian. 

The  Michigan  meridian,  coincident  with  lon- 
gitude 84  degrees,  19  minutes,  9  seconds  west, 
with  base  line  on  the  parallel  seven  miles  north 


384        LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

of  Detroit,  governs  the  survey  of  the  State  of 
Michigan. 

The  Tallahassee  meridian,  located  on  longi- 
tude 80  degrees,  18  minutes  west  from  Green- 
wich, runs  due  north  and  south  from  its  base 
line  on  the  parallel  at  Tallahassee,  and  governs 
the  survey  of  the  lands  in  Florida. 

The  St.  Stephens  meridian,  in  longitude  88 
degrees,  2  minutes  west,  starts  from  Mobile, 
passes  through  St.  Stephens,  has  for  its  base 
line  parallel  31  degrees  north  latitude,  and  con- 
trols the  survey  of  Southern  Alabama,  and  in 
Mississippi  lying  east  of  the  Pearl  Eiver  and 
south  of  township  ten  (10)  north,  in  said  state. 

The  Huntsville  meridian,  coincident  with  lon- 
gitude 86  degrees,  31  minutes  west,  extends 
south  from  the  northern  boundary  line  of  Ala- 
bama, passes  through  the  town  of  Huntsville, 
and  governs  the  survey  of  Northern  Alabama. 

The  Choctaw  meridian,  in  longitude  89  de- 
grees, 10  minutes,  30  seconds  west,  passes  two 
miles  west  of  Jackson,  Mississippi,  extending 
north  from  base  line  twenty-nine  miles  south  of 
Jackson  and  ends  at  the  north  on  the  south  line 
of  the  Choctaw  Cession,  and  controls  the  sur- 
vey east  and  west  of  the  meridian  and  north  of 
its  base  line. 

The  Washington  meridian,  91  degrees,  5  min- 
utes west  longitude,  and  seven  miles  east  of 
Washington,  Mississippi,  with  base  line  on  par- 
allel 31  degrees  north  latitude,  governs  the  sur- 


THE  PRIME  MERIDIANS.  385 

vey  of  the  southwestern  part  of  the  State  of 
Mississippi. 

The  St.  Helena  meridian,  coincident  with  90 
degrees,  11  minutes  west  longitude,  extends 
from  parallel  31  degrees  north  latitude  as  a 
base  due  south,  passing  one  mile  east  of  Baton 
Rouge,  Louisiana,  and  controls  the  survey  of 
the  State  of  Louisiana  east  of  the  Mississippi 
River. 

The  Louisiana  meridian,  longitude  92  de- 
grees, 20  minutes  west,  intersecting  parallel 
of  latitude  31  degrees  north,  forty-eight  miles 
west  of  the  Mississippi  River  and  with  this  lat- 
itude as  a  base,  governs  the  survey  of  the  land 
in  Louisiana  west  of  the  Mississippi  River. 

The  New  Mexico  meridian,  longitude  106  de- 
grees, 52  minutes,  9  seconds  west,  intersecting 
its  base  line  on  the  Rio  Grande  Del  Norte,  ten 
miles  below  the  mouth  of  the  Puerco  River,  on 
a  parallel  of  34  degrees,  19  minutes  north,  con- 
trols the  survey  of  New  Mexico  and  the  Valley 
of  the  Rio  Grande  in  Southwestern  Colorado. 

The  Great  Salt  Lake  meridian,  longitude  111 
degrees,  53  minutes,  47  seconds  west,  intersects 
its  base  line  on  parallel  passing  through  Temple 
Block  in  Salt  Lake  City,  Utah,  at  40  degrees,  46 
minutes,  4  seconds  north  latitude,  and  governs 
the  survey  of  the  State  of  Utah. 

The  Boise  meridian,  106  degrees,  20  minutes 
west  longitude,  with  base  line  on  parallel  43  de- 

25 


386        LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 

grees,  26  minutes  north  latitude,  which  it  inter- 
sects between  the  Snake  and  Boise  Rivers,  nine- 
teen miles  south,  29  degrees,  30  minutes  west  of 
Boise  City,  and  governs  the  survey  of  the  State 
of  Idaho. 

The  Mt.  Diablo  meridian,  longitude  121  de- 
grees, 54  minutes  west,  with  base  line  coinci- 
dent with  latitude  37  degrees,  53  minutes  north, 
passes  through  the  summit  of  the  mountain 
which  gave  it  its  name,  and  governs  the  survey 
of  Central  and  Northeastern  California,  and  all 
of  Nevada. 

The  San  Bernardino  meridian  in  California, 
longitude  116  degrees,  56  minutes  west,  inter- 
sects its  base  line  at  Mt.  San  Bernardino  at  lat- 
itude 34  degrees,  6  minutes  north.  It  governs 
the  survey  of  Southern  California  east  of  the 
meridian  and  that  part  of  the  state  west  of  it 
south  of  the  eighth  standard  parallel,  south  of 
Mt.  Diablo  base  line. 

The  Humboldt  meridian,  124  degrees,  11  min- 
utes west  longitude,  intersects  its  base  line  on 
the  summit  of  Mt.  Pierce,  latitude  46  degrees, 
25  minutes,  30  seconds  north,  and  controls  the 
survey  of  the  northwest  corner  of  California 
west  of  the  Coast  Kanges  and  north  of  Township 
5  south  of  Humboldt  base. 

The  Willamette  meridian  in  latitude  122  de- 
grees, 44  minutes  west,  has  for  a  base  line  par- 
allel 45  degrees,  30  minutes  north,  and  controls 
the  public  survey  of  Oregon  and  Washington. 


THE  PRIME  MERIDIANS.  387 

The  Montana  meridian  extends  north  and 
south  from  the  initial  monument  established 
on  the  summit  of  a  limestone  hill,  longitude 

111  degrees,  40  minutes,  54  seconds  west,  lati- 
tude 45  degrees,  46  minutes,  27  seconds  north, 
which  parallel  of  latitude  is  its  base  line.    It 
governs  the  survey  of  the  whole  of  Montana. 

The  Gila  and  Salt  River  meridian  in  longitude 

112  degrees,  15  minutes,  46  seconds  west,  has 
base  line  on  parallel  33  degrees,  22  minutes,  57 
seconds  north,  which  it  intersects  on  the  south 
side  of  the  Gila  River,  opposite  the  mouth  of 
Salt  Eiver,  and  governs  the  survey  of  Arizona. 

The  Indian  meridian,  longitude  97  degrees, 
15  minutes,  56  seconds  west,  intersects  its  base 
line  parallel  34  degrees,  31  minutes  north  lati- 
tude, at  Ft.  Arbuckle,  Oklahoma,  and  governs 
the  survey  of  that  state,  including  the  remain- 
der of  the  Indian  lands. 

The  boundaries  of  the  public  lands,  when  once 
established,  approved  by  the  Surveyors-Gener- 
al and  accepted  by  the  government,  are  un- 
changeable, and  there  is  a  severe  penalty  for  re- 
moval of  any  monument  of  a  survey.  (See 
page  65,  ante. 


Let  me  live  in  my  house  by  the  side  of  the  road, 

Where  the  race  of  men  go  by; 
They  are  good,  they  are  bad,  they  are  weak,  they  are  strong, 

Wise,  foolish — so  am  I. 
Then  why  should  I  sit  in  the  scorner's  seat, 

Or  hurl  the  cynic's  ban? 
Let  me  live  in  my  house  by  the  side  of  the  road, 

And  be  a  friend  of  man. 

FOSS. 


(388) 


WORD  INDEX 


Abraham 

Abb's  Track 

Abstract  and  Title 

Abstract,  Arrangement.. 

Abstract,  Arrangement 
of 

Abstract  Certificate 

Abstract,  Form  of 

Abstract  Defined 

Abstract,  Need  of 

Abstract  of  Title 

Abstract  of  New  County 

Abstract,  Sample  of 

Abstract,  Size  of 

Abstract,  Use  of 

Abstract,  Where  to  be- 
gin  

Abstract,  When  to  Secure 

Abstractor,  The 123, 

Abstractor's  Responsi- 
bility  

Abstractor,  Skill  of 

Abstractor's  Story,  The . 

Abstracts,  English 

Abstracts,  Recorders' . . . 

Abstracts  to  be  Fur- 
nished by 

Acknowledgments .  .  198, 

Acquisition  of  Territory. 

Adam 

Additions,  Town 

Administrator's  Deed. . . 

Adopted  heirs 

Adverse  Title. . 


18 

17 

124 

122 

136 
139 
137 
122 
130 
122 
128 
142 
136 
138 

142 
138 
136 

126 
138 
37 
126 
126 

127 
353 
109 
103 
86 
193 
214 
240 


Adverse  Possession 241 

Affidavit 155 

Aim  of  work 10 

Alienation  of  Title 172 

Alimony 201 

American  Survey  System  45 
Assignment  of  Mortgage  367 
Attorney,  Reliability  of..  139 

Avenues 88 

"  Bad  "  Descriptions ....    100 

Bankruptcy 158 

Beecher 6 

Bibliography 13 

Bill  of  Sale 372 

Blazed  Tree  65 

Block 86 

Bond  for  Deed 238,  357 

Boston 88 

Canada  Survey 49 

Caption 142 

Certificate 156 

Certificate  of  Abstract . .   139 

Certificate  of  Title 253 

Chain 43 

Chain,  Two  Perch 44 

Chattel  Mortgage 371 

Chattel  Note 370 

Cheap  Abstract 131 

Check 378 

Clouds  on  Title 239 

Coal  Lease 237 

Coin  Values 350 

Colonists  Claim 66 

Color  of  Title 169 


(389) 


390 


LAND  SUBVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 


Collateral  Note 373 

Commissioner's  Deed . . .  194 

Confiscation 164 

Confusion  in  Descrip- 
tions   96 

Consideration 196 

Convergence 69 

Conveyancing 181 

Corner,  Jog 64 

Corner  Markers 63 

Corner  Slip 68 

Correction  Lines 54,  69 

Coupon  Note 364 

Court,  No  Guaranty. . . .  195 

Court  Warranty 210 

"Cut  Throat"  Mort- 
gage   204 

De  BonisNon 217 

Debts 216 

Dedication 155 

Deeds 189 

Deed  of  Partition 193 

Deed  by  Attorney 148 

Deed  in  blank 191 

Deed  of  Trust 193,  363 

Deed,  Origin  of 112 

Deed,  Parts  of 189 

Deed  to  Correct 319 

Defeasance 205 

Defendants 149 

Deficient  Descriptions.. .  97 

Delivery  of  Deed 195 

Demand  for  Rent 374 

Derivative  Titles 161 

Description 197 

Describing  Land,  How...  90 

Descriptions,  Sample  of.  100 

Description,  Wrong 145 

Devisee 114 

Desert  Land. .                 .  174 


Dietz,  JohnF 140 

Divorce 221 

Donation 179 

Dower 184,  220,  275 

Draft 379 

Early  Method  of  Sale...  Ill 

Early  Surveys 7 

Easements 238 

East  160  acres 96 

English  Titles 120 

Entry 143 

Equity 206 

Escheat 164 

Estate  conveyed 191 

Estates  in  expectancy. . .  184 

Evenly  off  of  side 96 

Examiner,  The 123,  140 

Examiner,  Work  of 140 

Exchange  of  Ownership.  110 

Executor 227 

Executor  with  Will 

Annexed 227 

Executor's  Deed 193 

Exploration 106 

Farm  Lease 362 

Farm  Wealth 250 

Fee 168 

Feudal  System 104 

Fifth  Prime  Meridian. .  .  383 

Figures  in  Abstract 128 

Filing 196 

First  Prime  Meridian.. .  382 

First  Lessons 9 

First  Surveyors 7 

Florida 173 

Forearmed 133 

Foreclosure 114,  149 

Forests 249 

Forfeiture 165 

Freeholds 108,  183 


WORD  INDEX. 


Furlong 42 

Gadsden  Purchase 173 

General  Land  Office.  ...     49 

Gerry  Elbridge 46 

Government  Lots 76 

Grantor 190 

Growth  of  Territory 66 

Guaranty  by  Court 195 

Guaranty  fund 272 

Guaranty  Policy 260 

Guide  Meridians 53 

Gunter's  Chain 43 

Half  Blood 214 

Holographic  Will 229 

Home,  Legal 213 

Homestead....  174,  184,  276 

Horticulture 250 

Hundreds 47 

Hutchins 45 

Illinois 60 

Illustrations,  Index 16 

Income  on  Stocks 346 

Incompetents 243 

Index  to  Errors 135 

Indian  Ownership 105 

Indianapolis 88 

Inheritance 213 

Insurance 131 

Insurance  of  Titles 255 

Intestate  Estate 212 

Interest  Tables 343 

Investments 278 

In  time  of  Peace,  etc 99 

Irregular  Section 75 

Irregular  Tracts 94 

James,  King 105 

Jefferson 45,  46 

Jog  Corner 64 

Judgments 157 

Judgment  note 377 


Judicial  sales 231 

Land  Commission 51 

Land  Measure 41,  341 

Land  Patent 144 

Land  values 246 

Land  Warrant 175 

Laws  of  Registration —   118 

League 43 

Leasehold 235 

Legal  Forms 352 

Legatee 115 

Lesser  Estates 168 

Lesson,  First 21 

Life  Insurance 278 

Limitation 242 

Lincoln,  A 39 

Long  Measure 347 

Louisiana  Method 118 

Lots  of  a  Section 76 

Louisiana  Purchase 173 

Map,  Town  Plat 89 

Map,  U.  S.  Territory, 

Growth 66 

Master's  Deed, 194 

Measurements,  Land...  .     41 

Measures,  Useful 341 

Mechanic's  Lien 244 

Memorials 64 

Merchantable  Title 166 

Meridians,  First 49 

Meridians  Guide 53 

Metes  and  Bounds 92 

Metric  System 50,  348 

Mexican  Cession 173 

Minor  Estates 185 

Missouri  Deed, 360 

Money,  How  to  Save ...     22 

Money  Values 350 

Mortgage 202,  366 

Mortgagee 203 


392 


LAND  SURVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 


Multiples 349 

Names,  Different 146 

Narrow  Range 57,  70 

Need  of  an  Abstract... .  130 

Need  of  Work 11 

Needle,  Variation  of. ...  67 

New  York 88 

New  Territory 66,  109 

North  half  of  Section  6. . .  78 

Nuncupative  Will 229 

Oil  Lease 237 

Ordinance  1785 47 

Origin  of  Ownership ....  103 

Original  Titles 161 

Outline 15 

Ownership,  Origin  of. ...  103 

Pace 42 

Parties  to  a  deed 196 

Partition 276 

Partition  Suit 219 

Partition,  The  first 116 

Part  Two 39 

Patent 144,  170 

Patent,  Delivery  of 170 

Patent,  Record  of 170 

Penalty,  Removing 

mark 65 

Pennywise  etc 98 

Perch 42 

Perfect  Abstract 166 

Perfect  Title 166 

Philadelphia 88 

Plat  and  Dedication ....  155 

Plat,  Naming  of 80 

Platting  a  town 84 

Poetry,  Deed  in 201 

Pole 42 

Political  Township 72 

Poor  Abstracting,  Re- 
sult...                           .  140 


Power  of  Attorney. .  147,  361 

Preemption 178 

Prime  Meridians,  All 

58,  381 

Prime  Meridians,  New. .  51 

Primogeniture 264 

Private  grants 177 

Private  Survey 63 

Probate 152 

Probate  of  Will 226 

Public  Records 116 

Public  Survey,  First. ...  47 

Putnam 45 

Quit  Claim  Deed.  .  .192,  359 

Railroad  Lands 176 

Rancho 50 

Range  Narrow 70 

Real  Property 110 

Receipt 380 

Record  of  Ownership...  .  116 

Record,  Omission  from..  117 

Records,  Value  of 262 

Recorders,  Abstracts. .  .  126 
Rectangular  Survey, 

First 48 

Redemption 204 

Registry,  Laws  of 118 

Release 147,  368 

Release,  Care  of 209 

Reserving  Life  Estate..  .  358 

Residuary  Clause 224 

Result  of  Poor  Abstract .  140 

Revenue  Stamps 199 

Roods 43 

Salt  Lake  City 88 

Sample  Descriptions ....  100 

San  Francisco 88 

School  Section 176 

School  Township 72 


WOED  INDEX. 


Section,  First 47 

Section  Irregular 75 

Section,  Lots  of  a 76 

Section  of  198  acres 79 

Section  of  1148  acres 78 

Section,  Parts  of 73 

Sectional  Survey,  where 

used 61 

Seizin,  Livery  of 181 

Seven  Ranges 48 

Sheriff's  Deed 194 

Signatures 198 

Signature  by  mark 145 

Slip  Corner! 68 

Smallest  Tract  Conveyed  101 

Special  Recitals 197 

Special  Warranty  Deed .  192 

Squatters 7 

Square  Mile 43 

Squire,  again 199 

"Squire,"  The 98 

Squire,  The  cheap 115 

Standard  Time 351 

State  Survey 60 

Streets 87 

Street  Corner 85 

Subsurface  Wealth 251 

Survey,  First 55 

Survey,  Private 63 

Survey,  where  used 42 

Surveys,  Early 7 

Surveyors,  First 7 

Surveying,  First 46 

Swamp  Land 175 

Swindler's  Note 376 

Systems  of  Title 265 

Tacking 169 

Taxes 158 

Taxes,  Sale  for 233 

Teachings,  First 12 


Tenant 236 

Tenants,  In  Common. . .  186 

Tenants,  Joint 186 

Territory,  Acquisition 

of 66,  173 

Testament 225 

Texas 173 

Texas  Land  Measure.. . .  43 

" This  Indenture "  etc. ..  Ill 

Third  Prime  Meridian. .  382 

Tiers 54 

Time,  Standard 351 

Titles 161 

Title,  Alienation  of 172 

Title  by  Conquest 162 

Title  by  Cession 162 

Title  by  Descent 162 

Title  Insurance 255 

Title  Merchantable 166 

Title,  Source  of 161 

Title,  Why  Defective. . .  134 

Top 238 

Torrens  System 264 

Torrens  System,  Cost  of 

'....271,  274 

Torrens  System,  Loss 

by 270 

Torrens  System,  Not 

used 271 

Torrens  System,  Refer- 
ences   273 

Torrens  System,  Weak- 
ness   268 

Town 62 

Town  Lots 82 

Town  Lots,  Description 

of 95 

Town  Plat 89 

Township,  First 47 

Township  Corner. . .  .14,  211 


394 


LAND  SUBVEY  AND  LAND  TITLES. 


Township  Narrow 72 

Township  Map 80 

Township,  Political 72 

Township,  school 72 

Township  and  Tier 56 

Trades  Development 247 

Tree,  Blazed 65 

Tree  Claim 174 

Trust  Deed 206,  365 

"Two  Marys," 260 

Useful  Tables 341 

Value  of  the  Abstract. . .  253 

Value  of  Insurance 259 

Value  of  Real  Estate. ...   130 


Vendor 190 

Vendor's  Lien, 207 

Warranty  Deed 132,  358 

Western  Boundary 107 

Who  to  Furnish  Ab- 
stract   167 

Will 113,  223,  369 

Will,  Destruction  of.  ...  230 

Will,  Holoographic 229 

Will,  Nuncupative 229 

Will,  who  may 228 

Wife's  Interest 261 

Widow's  Estate 275 

Widows'  Investments . . .  278 


An  index  is  a  necessary  implement  without  which  the  vol- 
ume is  but  a  labyrinth,  having  no  clue  to  direct  the  readers 
within. 


9  •ljfiC3EHSi»- 


